Super Sixes SRL | SA vs IND - Preview, Form Guide, Predicted XI, Key Players
After a two-day break, Super Sixes SRL is finally back, with South Africa hosting India with both the sides coming into this encounter on the back of victories in their last games respectively. All eyes would be fixated on the Indian top-order and the South African top-order on the day.
Form Guide
India - W L L
After two efforts at turning the L into a W, India finally got the dub in the clash against the Three Lions on Friday. Going into the Monday encounter, India would be highly confident after breaking the two-match losing streak against a formidable opponent in the form of England. Both their batting and their bowling clicked on Friday, giving them an edge over their counterparts South Africa on the day.
South Africa - W L L
Two sides go into the fixture with a similar form guide, a win followed by two emphatic losses. But the defining factor for both the sides would be the win attached to their name before this clash of two big sides. De Kock found themselves in a position of disarray before pulling their socks up in the encounter against Australia. Against the Kangaroos, they chased down a target of 152, wherein they looked confident from the start of the chase before the meltdown under pressure. On Monday, however, they would be looking to avoid the same.
Game Day Watch
Friday was yet another day at the office for the Indians, who trashed England in a scintillating all-round performance from Virat Kohli and co. Fielding first, they wrapped up the English batting party to a total of 141/9 before crunching the contest in their favour, thanks to KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma.
On the other hand, the Proteas snuck home in a rather tense fashion, in a three-wicket win over the Australian side, led by Aaron Finch. Chasing a meagre score of 152, de Kock’s side found themselves in a precarious position, of 126/5 before scampering home, thanks to the lusty blow towards the end by their pacer, Kagiso Rabada.
Key Batsmen
KL Rahul
While it is a no-brainer to go with Rohit Sharma, it is criminal not to notice his batting partner at the other end. In the Rohit clouded Indian batting order, it is easy to look past Rahul’s efforts from the other end. His consistent run has been wiped away by Rohit’s blitzkrieg. However, the management knows that his purple patch would definitely result in a big score if he comes out all guns blazing against South Africa, an opposition against whom he has had some tremendous success. While the entire pressure is on Rohit, Rahul could walk away on Monday being India’s best batsman.
Rassie van der Dussen
South Africa’s batting order has looked shaky in the recent past, with their collapse against Pakistan and Australia. But as they say, they are some positives to even their losses - which is the form of the talented Rassie van der Dussen. After being dubbed as the next big thing for several years, the right-hander has finally made it to the international stage, with his performance and not his talent. In the last three encounters, inconsistent batting display from Quinton de Kock and co has overshadowed van der Dussen’s performance. His ability to play both pace and spin would be crucial against India when the two sides meet on Monday.
Key Bowlers
Navdeep Saini
After all eyes were on Ravindra Jadeja in the previous fixture, this time it could very well be Navdeep Saini’s turn of applying pressure on the opposition. The pacer has become one of India’s strengths with the new-ball, in partnership with the willy Jasprit Bumrah. While Bumrah has had few shaky games, Saini’s steady form has seen a rise in his stocks. On top of that, he picked up a 3/30 in the last encounter against England which would give him the world of confidence going into this contest.
Imran Tahir
Despite the looming presence of both Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada upfront, the onus of picking up wickets always ends up in the hands of the veteran leg-spinner, Imran Tahir, who picked up two in the last two games. Against India, he would key for the reason that he knows the batsmen closely from his IPL stint with the Chennai Super Kings. On top of that, his variations alongside his change in pace would be highly helpful in the middle-phase, when the Indian batting-order takes the game away from the opposition.
When to watch: June 8, 2020, 3 PM
Where to watch: SportsCafe and Sportsbet.io
Predicted XIs
India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli (C), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Navdeep Saini, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (c) Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Dwaine Pretorius, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Dale Steyn, Tabraiz Shamsi, Imran Tahir