South Africa look to hit straps in T20 warm up game

South Africa look to hit straps in T20 warm up game: South Africa will start their campaign on what is going to be a 72 day long tour of India with a T20 warm up game at Palam against a youthful India A side on Tuesday. For the Proteas the game will be more about getting accustomed to Indian conditions rather than a professional contest. The visitors are set to face India nationals in a 3 game T20I series that will mark the beginning of the much awaited Gandhi-Mandela series.

South Africa Test captain Hashim Amla will though be missing the game. According to the team management, Amla decided to join the team couple of days late due to some personal commitments.
“Amla will join us on Wednesday,” said Coach Russell Domingo.

Another concern for the Proteas is that David Wiese’s replacement Albie Morkel is yet to get his visa. Wiese whose experience would have helped the tourists was ruled out due to injury. The Air Force ground will witness action packed scenes as the India A side is also full of exciting young talent.

There will be no Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, as they are not part of the T20I squad. However, this touring party looks strong with the likes of Marchant de Lange, Kagiso Rabada, Albie Morkel, Imran Tahir, and Chris Morris in the bowling department. Tahir who was marked by none other than Sachin Tendulkar as one to look out for, will be a serious threat in these conditions.

Young wicketkeeper batsman Quinton de Kock will look to keep plundering runs after his experience in the Tri series involving the A sides of India, Australia and South Africa earlier this year.

The game will also be closely observed by the Indian T20 squad as they will look to find any chinks in the armour of key South African players. AB and du Plessis will be the major attraction after Amla has decided to pull out.

Also Read – 6 South African players to watch out for in the Gandhi Mandela series

The Indian outfit reflects that selectors are considering the horses for courses policy, seriously. Hardik Pandya and Yuzvendra Chahal will be eager to repay the faith shown in them. Pawan Negi the hard-hitting batsman and a useful left arm spinner will also be a player to notice. There is also the prowess of Anureet Singh who has displayed immense composure playing for the Kings XI outfit in IPL. Among the batsmen Mayank Agarwal has had some success for India A in the list A matches in recent times.

With the T20 World Cup just months away, a good performance can obviously make a difference.

The match was earlier scheduled to be in the Ferozshah Kotla but the perennial trouble with DDCA administration forced BCCI to shift it to Palam. A look at the line up of both sides is enough to suggest that we can expect a run fest tomorrow.

The visitors will also play a 2 day game against Board President Eleven before the tour officially kicks off.

Squad:

India A: Mandeep Singh (c), Mayank Agarwal, Manan Vohra, Manish Pandey, Surya Kumar Yadav, Sanju Samson, Hardik Pandya, Rishi Dhawan, Anureet Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Pawan Negi, Kuldeep Yadav.

SA T20 squad: Faf du Plessis (c), Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock, Marchant de Lange, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, Eddie Leie, Kyle Abbott, David Miller, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada, Albie Morkel, Khaya Zondo.