ENG vs SA 2020: Ideal playing XI for both teams ahead of the first T20I in Cape Town
The South African team is gearing up to play their first international series after the pandemic-induced break. The African nation will be hosting the English team for a 3-match T20I series, which will be commencing on Friday.
A 3-match ODI series will begin after the conclusion of the T20I series. Many international superstars like Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, and Jos Buttler are participating on this tour, so cricket fans around the globe are excited to witness them in action.
The itinerary of the three-match T20I series is as follows:
1st T20I - November 27 (Friday) | Venue - Newlands, Cape Town| Start time - 9:30 PM (IST)/4:00 PM (GMT)
2nd T20I - November 29 (Sunday) | Venue - Boland Park, Paarl | Start time - 6:00 PM (IST)/12:30 PM (GMT)
3rd T20I - December 1 (Tuesday) | Venue - Newlands, Cape Town | Start time - 9:30 PM (IST)/4:00 PM (GMT)
Earlier this year, in February, the English team played a three-match T20 series in South Africa. They managed to win that series by a 2-1 margin. Eoin Morgan won the player of the series award as he was the highest run-getter in the T20 series with 136 runs across three matches.
South African skipper Quinton de Kock finished as the second-highest run-getter with 131 runs. Both the captains will look to playing a crucial role with the bat again during the upcoming series.
Sahara Park, Newlands, which is the venue for this match, has always aided both the batting and bowling departments uniformly. 151 runs is the average first innings total at this ground, and in the second innings, it reduces to 141 runs. 193 runs is the highest total recorded at this ground in T20I cricket.
We all are well aware of the extravagant hitting prowess of English batsmen, so we can expect them to break this T20 record and set a new high score at the venue.
After missing the T20I series against Australia and Pakistan earlier this year due to an injury, Jason Roy will be making a comeback into the team's playing XI. He will, in all likelihood, open the innings with Jos Buttler.
The rest of the English batting line-up will be flexible. Dawid Malan, Johnny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan, and Ben Stokes will form the middle order. Except for Bairstow, all others are left-handed batsmen.
South Africa's lone spinner, Tabraiz Shamsi, is a chinaman bowler and spins the ball away from left-handers. England's team management might send in Bairstow to counter this when Shamsi is operating in the middle overs.
There will be a selection headache for Morgan while choosing between Sam Curran and Moeen Ali. For a better overall team balance, they might slot in Moeen Ali as he can be effective against the likes of David Miller and Quinton de Kock.
England already have four pace bowling options in Tom Curran, Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, and Stokes. So they might opt for a second spin option to complement Rashid's leg-spin in the middle overs.
South Africa, on the other hand, have a well-settled all-round bowling unit that is capable of winning games for their side. Batting has been the issue for the Proteas team ever since the departure of stalwarts like AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla.
Quinton de Kock and Faf du Plessis will have to guide the young brigade during this series. Janneman Malan, who has been a prolific run-scorer in domestic cricket, will mostly open the batting with de Kock.
The rookie batsmen, with the highest T20 score in the team of 128*, will look to cement the opening position by performing consistently against a high-quality English side. Rassie van der Dussen, Heinrich Klaasen, and David Miller form the team's middle order.
Klaasen scored 66 runs off 33 balls when the two sides last met in a T20I match. He will look to continue in the same vein during this series. David Miller and all-rounder Andile Pheklukawayo will be the designated finishers for the South African team.
England's ideal XI:
Jason Roy, Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan, Eoin Morgan, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Tom Curran, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Jofra Archer
South Africa's ideal XI:
Quinton de Kock, Janneman Malan, Faf du Plessis, Rassie van der Dussen, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Andile Pheklukawayo, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi