South Africa Tour Of India 2019 - Preview

South Africa Tour Of India - Proteas Begin Their Campaign In The ICC World Test Championship

Battle of Two Giants in International Cricket

South Africa would kick-off their quest for glory in the ICC World Test Championship with the 3-Test Series against India, which is all set to begin from 2nd October at Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam. This will be followed by two more tests, one from the 10th of October, to be played at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune and the 3rd Test, starting from the 19th of October at the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi. 

3-Match T20 Series To Start-Off The Tour

Quinton de Kock will lead the T20 side for South Africa

The Gandhi-Mandella Series is going to be South Africa's second assignment after their disastrous campaign in the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England, where they had suffered a humiliating first-round exit from the showpiece event. The Tests would be preceded by a 3-match T20 series.

The 1st of the 3 T20Is will be played at the picturesque Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala. The 2nd and 3rd T20Is would be played at Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali and at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on 18th and 22nd September respectively.

The T20 Series would be an ideal platform for both India and South Africa to try out different combinations, as they look towards building a core team for the T20 World Cup next year in Australia. As we all know, India has the honour of winning the inaugural title back in the year 2007 under the astute leadership of MS Dhoni, when they beat Pakistan at Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg. So, come the summer of Australia next year, where India would be aiming for their 2nd title, South Africa would look to stamp their authority and become champions in the shortest format of the game.

Captains' Corner

South Africa would have a new captain in the form of Quinton de Kock to lead their T20 outfit, while they will have their regular captain Faf Du Plessis back for the Test Series. On the other hand, The Men in Blue will have their ever-reliable Virat Kohli leading in both formats of the game.

Let's take a look at what the captains of both teams will have in store for us:

Quinton De Kock

The newly appointed T20 captain for South Africa, Quinton De Kock will aim to use his experience of playing in India during the IPL to good effect as far as adaptability is concerned and help his teammates do the same by sharing valuable inputs. For De Kock, this T20 series will provide an opportunity for him to showcase his captaincy skills apart from his role as a swashbuckling opener.

After the team's arrival in India, Quinton De Kock stressed the importance of competing and fighting hard on a consistent basis. He said, "Coming into this series, we've got a lot of new players. Win or lose, I just want the guys to keep competing, keep fighting. As long as they keep doing that, I'm sure we'll be in good hands. We've got a young team, so there will be a lot of energy. Looking forward to that."

Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli has recently led India to a series victory against the West Indies in the Caribbean across formats and began their campaign in the ICC World Test Championship in style with a 2-0 win in the Test Series. Where on one hand, it was a clinical performance from India but one has to accept the fact that the Men in Blue did not get tested at any point of time in the Test Series. This upcoming series against South Africa will prove to be a different kettle of fish altogether. Despite South Africa missing out on the services of their recently retired star players, Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn, they will still have enough ammunition to dismantle India in their own backyard. 

The test for Virat Kohli would be to rise to the challenge and not take the Proteas lightly by sitting on their laurels. South Africa has always been extremely competitive, whenever they come over in this part of the world to take part in any series. So, it is not only important for captain Virat Kohli to step-up and lead from the front but also necessary for experienced players like Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Jasprit Bumrah to be in top form and guide the youngsters like Krunal Pandya, Deepak Chahar, Rahul Chahar, Navdeep Saini and others.

Faf DuPlessis

Faf du Plessis will lead the team during South Africa's inaugural series against India in the ICC World Test Championship. The test squad consists of three uncapped players along with those, who have not had much exposure in International Cricket. So, this would put additional responsibilities on the shoulders of Captain Du Plessis, Aiden Markram and Quinton De Kock not only to put their best foot forward but also guide the youngsters towards tackling the potent bowling attack along with the strong batting line-up of India.

It will be extremely important for DuPlessis to start this World Test Championship off in style, especially after a below-par performance in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019. This will be an opportunity for Faf and his men to showcase the kind of talent that South Africa possesses. 

Players To Watch Out For:

Both India and South Africa boast of quality players, who would make for a grand spectacle in front of packed crowds during the T20 series. As far as the Test Series is concerned, hopefully, there would be sporting wickets on offer, which would allow the matches to be result-oriented. Hence, viewers will not have to settle for a draw.

Let us take a look into the players, who can make a difference in the T20s as well as in the Test Matches:

Rohit Sharma

India would like Rohit to be in red hot form for this series

Known as the 'Hitman', Rohit Sharma would like to get the team off to a flying start and make it count by scoring big. He will be the man, South Africa should look out for, along with captain Virat Kohli.

Virat Kohli

Virat will look to convert his starts into big hundreds

You can look past the charismatic captain Virat Kohli. The charismatic captain of India along with Rohit Sharma would form the backbone of the Indian batting line-up. He has been in good form but unfortunately, failed to convert his good starts into big scores during the recently concluded series against West Indies. So, he would like to set things straight this time around against the Proteas. He will be key to India doing well in both forms of the game in this series. So, South Africa, brace yourselves for Virat Kohli magic.

Cheteshwar Pujara

Cheteshwar Pujara would like to repeat the form that he had shown in the
series against Australia Down Under

Patience, Grit, Determination and Solidity. These are the words, which one can easily use to describe the Test Specialist Cheteshwar Pujara as a player. He has the ability to make even potent bowling attacks look blunt because of his rock-solid defence. So, at No 3, you cannot expect anyone other than Pujara to steady the ship, in case one of the openers fail to get going. 

Hardik Pandya

Hardik will wish to play the finisher's role to perfection in the T20 series

Hardik Pandya possesses the power and skill to turn any match on its head. He has proved to be a match-winner on several occasions while playing both for India as well as for Mumbai Indians during the IPL. So, all eyes will surely be on him during the T20s.

Jasprit Bumrah

India will wish to see Bumrah continue with his wicket-taking abilities

Jasprit Bumrah is one bowler, who has come up the ranks through some exemplary performances in International Cricket. He is arguably the best bowler in the world and the go-to man for captain Virat Kohli. You need 20 wickets to win a Test Match and with Bumrah leading the bowling attack, India should be confident enough to get the job done more often than not.

Quinton De Kock

De Kock will hope to play the dual role of wicket-keeping and captaincy with perfection in the T20 series

Quinton de Kock will have a crucial role to play as a leader, during the T20I series. Captaincy will be a different challenge altogether for the wicket-keeper batsman and in the absence of experienced players, South Africa would expect him to step-up even in the Test Series.

Faf DuPlessis

He would like to lead from the front in the Test Series

Faf du Plessis will be leading South Africa in the Test Series against India, which is also going to be their first assignment in the ICC World Test Championship. Du Plessis would be eager to make amends after a below-par performance during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 in England, which saw them crash out of the tournament in the league stage. South Africa has inducted three uncapped players including Rudi Second, Anrich Nortje and Senuran Muthusamy, which makes Faf's role both as a leader and a batsman, extremely significant.

Aiden Markram

A chance to cement his place at No 3 in South Africa's test team

Aiden Markram, still early in his career, has only played 17 tests and scored 1358 runs in 31 innings, at an average of 43.81. During the last series against India in the Rainbow Nation, his performance was nothing to write home about. Apart from a 94 in the 2nd Test at Centurion, Markram did not trouble the Indian bowlers. In this present South African test outfit, with the retirement of the second-highest run-getter in Test Cricket for the Proteas, Hashim Amla, it is imperative for Aiden Makram to put his hand up and score big runs for his side.

Kagiso Rabada

Rabada will be eager to stamp his authority in the series

The No 2 ranked bowler in International Cricket, Kagiso Rabada will spearhead the bowling attack for South Africa. He had an ordinary World Cup by his standards, which made captain Faf du Plessis question his commitment towards the national team and raise eyebrows for his inclination towards representing Delhi Capitals in the IPL. This would have surely hurt Kagiso's ego and hence, he will be eager to fire in all cylinders during the T20s and the Test Series against India, thus restoring the faith back in his captain's mind.

Lungi Ngidi

Ngidi will hope to be the perfect aide for Rabada

Lungi Ngidi will be an important weapon for South Africa in the Test Series. His ability to pick wickets at crucial junctures and the partnership with Kagiso Rabada will help form a formidable bowling attack for the Proteas. Ngidi would take heart from the fact that he was the Man of the Match in his debut test against India at Centurion last year, where he picked up 7 wickets in all, six of which coming in the 2nd innings to win the 2nd Test for his team. Faf du Plessis would surely like to see a repeat of that performance in the upcoming test series against the Men in Blue.