Tuesday sees South Africa and Pakistan move on to the second format of three as the Proteas tour Pakistan this October. Three 20I matches will be played tomorrow and Saturday, with the first in Rawalpindi before two in Lahore.
Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium also hosted the second and final Test of the two-match Test series. The World Champion Proteas won the second Test by eight wickets, avenging a 93-run defeat in the first Test. That loss was their first in the long format after a run of 10 wins on the bounce.
Here is a look ahead at the contest.
Pakistan VS South Africa Venue: Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium
Pakistan VS South Africa Date: Tuesday, October 28
Pakistan VS South Africa Odds:
History
This is a typical South Africa versus Pakistan series in how the squads have been selected. While it is being billed as a build-up towards the T20 World Cup, that tournament is still four months away, with bags of cricket to be played in the interim.
South Africa is taking on Pakistan once again with a mixture of veterans and youngsters, first and second string. That is typical of how these series have been over the past decade, with the management team working to manage minutes and any injury concerns.
Pakistan is Pakistan, and their selections seem random from one series to the next, with no effective form of planning. This can lead to wins in the moment but issues down the road.
Pakistan
Both teams have significant returns in this series. Pakistan’s recall of Babar Azam catches the eye.
Axam has not played T20 cricket since the end of the PSL in May. Around this time, he was dropped from the international setup in the shortest form of the game, unable to introduce the soak that he once carried into every at-bat at both the franchise and international levels.
Azam may not even have been in this position had any of his replacements worked out. As it is, the politicizing figure is still likely the best player at his spot in the lineup.
Azam is part of a core group in this lineup that many expected to have been phased out for younger talent. Shanheen Shah Afridi still has his spot, while Naseem Shah has returned to the selectors’ plans.
South Africa
Quinton de Kock is back for South Africa, having unretired from ODIs and being recalled to the T20 squad for the first time since last year’s T20 World Cup final. While de Kock never technically retired, seeing the iconic batsman’s name on the squad list is still great.
The return of de Kock is even more critical as the Proteas are not at full strength for this tour. David Miller is not playing in the T20Is, nor is the regular captain, Aiden Markram. Add in injuries such as the one to pacer Gerald Coetzee, and this is an underpowered South Africa team compared to the one they could put out there.
Uncapped batter Tony de Zorzi could see his first action for the Proteas at some point on this tour.
Best Bets
Two incomplete sides. Take the one with longer odds. I like South Africa to win at 11/10 in a match that is basically a toss-up, with De Kock showing that class is permanent with a best batsman display at 23/4.
