South Africa vs Sri Lanka, 3rd T20I, Preview: Visitors hope to end the tour with a consolidating victory

There will be a lot of focus on Isuru Udana, who was the star for Sri Lanka in the 2nd T20I.

Published - 23 Mar 2019, 14:10 IST | Updated - 23 Mar 2019, 14:10 IST

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It seemed as if Sri Lanka would have to deal with yet another one of those batting collapses when they played South Africa in the 2nd T20I. At 62/6 after 10 overs while chasing 181 runs, there seemed no way out for them. But Isuru Udana played a gem of a knock for the visitors. He took them so close to a win, yet, they ended up being so far. Sri Lanka has been nothing short of such inspirational performances on this tour.

Someone or the other has been pulling off a magical knock or a terrific spell. However, the team failed to apply itself as a group. One or two individuals can’t win you games and the white-ball leg of this tour exemplifies this fact. As they head into the last game of this tour, the team is under a great deal of pressure. The Islanders haven’t won a single game in the limited-overs formats, especially after the thumping wins in the two Tests.

South Africa, like they have been doing, will surely come down hard at them. It is the responsibility of the visitors to complement each other’s efforts in the final game. They will be looking for a consolidation win after the embarrassing losses thus far.

Team Combinations

South Africa

The Proteas do not have a lot of options to choose from. There are just 12 players in their squad and they could well continue with the same team from the 2nd T20I. This means that Andile Phehlukwayo will continue to warm the bench. Dwaine Pretorius performed well with the ball in the last game and thus could retain his spot. Lutho Sipamla didn’t have a great outing in the second game. But he is a youngster and it will be a great learning curve for him. He is expected to mature from here onwards.

Predicted XI: Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram, Rassie van der Dussen, JP Duminy (C), David Miller, Sinethemba Qeshile (WK), Chris Morris, Dwaine Pretorius, Dale Steyn, Lutho Sipamla, Tabraiz Shamsi.

Sri Lanka

It is quite surprising that Sri Lanka is still persisting with Niroshan Dickwella despite having someone like Sadeera Samarawickrama available. They could pick him for the final game of this tour. Isuru Udana is likely to be promoted higher up the order and could possibly bat at five or six. If one or two others manage to deliver, Sri Lanka will surely be in a strong position. Nine of their eleven players are very good batsmen and collapses aren’t expected from this team.

Predicted XI: Sadeera Samarawickrama (WK), Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Kamindu Mendis, Priyamal Perera, Isuru Udana, Angelo Perera, Thisara Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Lasith Malinga (c), Jeffrey Vandersay.

Focus will be on

Aiden Markram (South Africa)

On the back of some good domestic performances, Aiden Markram is back into the Proteas squad. This is his last chance of redemption before the World Cup 2019. He played a good knock in the 5th ODI but he needs to maintain his consistency. After having failed in the last game, Markram will be eager to pull off a better show in the upcoming match.

Isuru Udana (Sri Lanka)

Isuru Udana is a highly crafty bowler. He has got quite a few variations up his sleeve and has been doing well in various T20 leagues around the world. But it is with his batting that he stole all the limelight. His unbeaten 84 off 48 balls should give him a lot of confidence and Sri Lanka will hope that it rubs off on his bowling performance as well.