Team India eye winning start to ODI series against formidable South Africa

Team India will be a confident unit as they enter the yard for the ODIs after a grandstand finish in the T20Is. A new look team India will have a few changes to their side from the ones that was a part of the recently concluded T20I series as the likes of Rajat Patidar, Sai Sudarshan, Axar Patel, Sanju Samson, Akash Deep and Yuzvendra Chahal will be coming in.

South Africa will also be welcoming Rassie van der Dussen into the mix alongside Wiaan Mulder and Kyle Verreyne, who can be a massive boost in the side’s batting flair after an abysmal outing at Centurion. Both the teams would be hoping to get off to a victorious start with the Proteas eyeing revenge for the mortifying shellacking that was inflicted upon them in the ODI World Cup.

For the Men in Blue, the youngsters will be playing a crucial role while for the South Africans it is about blending youth and experience as they begin the hot hunt of their future superstars.

This is going to be a crackling affair considering the fact that both the sides will be famished for a victory as Wanderers gear up to host the might of India eyeing an important win away from home while the hosts will be raring to throw a spanner in the works.

Venue Watch:

When it comes to ODIs, Wanderers has hosted 51 encounters from which 21 have been won batting first while 28 have been won chasing. The average first innings score is 240 while the average score batting second drops down to an alarming 204. The highest total recorded in this venue was the world record chase of 438 runs forged by the hosts as they went onto beat Australia.

Head to Head:

Matches played: 91

South Africa - 38

India – 50

Match Details:

Match – South Africa vs India

Venue: Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg

Date: 17th December, 2023

Time: 1:30 PM

Squads:

India: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sai Sudharsan, Tilak Varma, Rajat Patidar, Rinku Singh, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (C)(wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Akash Deep.

South Africa:  Aiden Markram (Captain), Ottniel Baartman, Nandre Burger, Tony de Zorzi, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Mihlali Mpongwana, David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Andile Phehlukwayo, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Lizaad Williams