T20 World Cup 2021: South Africa's strongest predicted playing XI for the tournament

South Africa have been that team that has looked perhaps the strongest team on paper on multiple occasions but have failed to win any ICC tournament. To be very honest, luck hasn’t been on their side quite often. From losing a tied semi-final in the 1999 WC and rain playing the spoilsport twice – 1992 WC semi-final & 2015 WC semi-final, they have had matches which are too difficult to be able to erase from the memories of the Protea fans.

One of the best bowling attacks in this year’s T20 World Cup, South Africa, under the newly appointed captain Temba Bavuma,  are in red hot form as they defeated the mighty West Indies 3-2 & thrashed Ireland 3-0, both series away from home. They would look to maintain this winning momentum ahead of the tournament which will provide them with the much-needed confidence. 

With stronger teams like Australia, England, and West Indies in their group, South Africa will have to be at the top of their game to qualify for the semi-finals and go on to win their first-ever ICC Trophy. So let’s look at their strongest predicted playing 11 for the tournament which can challenge & win against the best in the world. 

South Africa’s strongest predicted playing XI for T20 WC

1. Quinton de Kock (wicketkeeper)

The best South African batsman & probably the best keeper-batsman in the world, Quinton de Kock is the man to watch out for in this year’s T20 WC. He may look like a teenager, but he surely is an assassin with the bat as well as with the gloves behind the stumps. 

He is in sublime form scoring 50+ scores in 6 successive innings at the international level, which is a great sign for South African cricket. He has scored 1605 runs in 54 matches at an average of 32.76 & strike rate just above 138.

After declining captaincy of South Africa, he would be eager to show his worth as a player in big tournaments & be the man his country requires him to be to be able to lift the T20 WC. The equation is absolutely simple, de Kock has to fire with the bat if South Africa want to qualify for the semi-finals of the WC.