The toss for the first T20I clash between India and South Africa on Sunday has been delayed due to rain
Overcast conditions were already foreshadowing the arrival of rain at the time of the clash (Pic: X/@ddsportschannel)
South Africa and India will both be testing their strength in depth when they meet in two white-ball series, starting with SA vs IND 1st T20I at Kingsmead in Durban on Sunday.
Three T20 matches will be followed by three one-day internationals during a tour which is a financial lifesaver for Cricket South Africa (CSA). The cash-strapped hosts stand to earn in excess of a billion rand ($53 million), mainly from TV rights, which is far in excess of income from any other incoming tours.
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"It will obviously help us balance the books but it is not just us, every country needs India, purely based on the broadcast revenues," said Pholetsi Moseki, chief executive of CSA. Both teams will be without key players for the white-ball games, ahead of two World Test Championship matches later in the tour.
South Africa's one-day and Test captain Temba Bavuma and fast bowler Kagiso Rabada will miss all the limited overs matches. Fast bowlers Gerald Coetzee, Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi will play only in the first two T20 internationals before returning to their franchises to play in domestic four-day cricket ahead of the Tests.
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Regular Indian captain Rohit Sharma and former captain Virat Kohli will also miss the limited overs games, while recent T20 captain Hardik Pandya is injured. Suryakumar Yadav, fresh from leading India to a 4-1 T20 home series win against Australia, will captain the T20 side while KL Rahul will be in charge for the one-day matches.
With the T20 World Cup due to be played in the West Indies and United States in June, the three-match T20 series provides an opportunity for fringe players to press their claims.
SA vs IND 1st T20I live updates: Squads
South Africa: Aiden Markram (capt), Ottniel Baartman, Matthew Breetzke, Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen (wkt), David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Lizaad Williams
India: Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Ravindra Jadeja (vice-capt), Ravi Bishnoi, Deepak Chahar, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan (wkt), Mukesh Kumar, Jitesh Sharma (wkt), Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar, Tilak Varma, Kuldeep Yadav
SA vs IND 1st T20I live updates: Pitch report
The wickets that South African pitches tend to offer more pace and bounce by default, however, in white-ball format, the pitches have been mostly flat favouring batsmen as of late.
SA vs IND 1st T20I live updates: Weather update
Weather experts have predicted a chance of thunderstorm in the morning at 11 AM local time (2:30 PM IST), and then again at 8 PM to 10 PM Local Time (11:30 PM to 1:30 AM IST). Although the forecast for rain is outside the playing hours (4 PM to 8 PM Local Time / 7:30 PM to 11:30 PM IST), there is a chance of weather playing spoilsport in the first T20I.
SA vs IND 1st T20I live updates: Toss update
The toss for the first T20I clash between India and South Africa on Sunday has been delayed due to rain. Overcast conditions were already foreshadowing the arrival of rain at the time of the clash. Covers were placed over the pitch before the intervention from the rain gods.
8:31 PM: Rain continues
The anticipation persists at Kingsmead. The drizzle lingers, signalling an ongoing waiting game.
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