West Indies tour of South Africa 2023: South Africa vs West Indies – 1st T20I Preview and Updates

Cricket

The one-day international series between South Africa and the West Indies ended 1-1 after the Proteas thrashed the visitors by four wickets in the final match. The focus is now on the three-match T20I series, which begins this Saturday at SuperSport Park. After underwhelming performances in the 2022 T20 World Cup, both South Africa and the West Indies have a lot to prove. Because they are playing at home, the Proteas will start as favourites.

The 1st T20I between South Africa vs West Indies will take place on March 25th, 2023 at SuperSport Park, Centurion.

Match Details to Note

Match: South Africa vs West Indies, 1st T20I, West Indies tour of South Africa, 2023

Date: March 25, 2023 (Saturday)

Time: 5:30 PM IST

Venue: SuperSport Park, Centurion

South Africa vs West Indies

South Africa (Match Odds – 1.35):

Preview:

South Africa hasn’t played a T20I since a disastrous World Cup match against the Netherlands in October 2022, in which they were defeated by 13 runs and were eliminated from the tournament. This series allows the team to restart the format from scratch.

South Africa is a dangerous team at home, with a roster full of destructive hitters. Quinton de Kock excels in this setting. The left-handed opener has 302 runs in T20Is against the West Indies, the most by any South African batter, with a strike rate of 133.62.

Rilee Rossouw, who has scored 241 runs in his last eight matches at a strike rate of nearly 180, has been among the runs recently and is the batter to watch. We also believe Heinrich Klaasen will maintain his strong form in the T20Is. In the previous ODI against the West Indies, the destructive batter blasted a sensational unbeaten 119 off just 61 balls, making a mockery of a 261-run target.

David Miller has found his finishing touch in recent months and will be the most dangerous man in the West Indian bowlers’ middle order.

South Africa’s pace bowling unit, led by Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada, will be a handful when the ball is new. Tabraiz Shamsi is also expected to do well in this series. The left-arm wrist spinner has a strong record against the West Indies, with 7 wickets in 6 T20Is at a 5.08 economy rate.

Full Squad:

Aiden Markram (c), Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Quinton de Kock (wk), Tristan Stubbs (wk), Kagiso Rabada, David Miller, Anrich Nortje, Sisanda Magala, Wayne Parnell, Lungi Ngidi, Rilee Rossouw, Marco Jansen, Tabraiz Shamsi, Bjorn Fortuin

Players to watch out for:

Rilee Rossouw

Rilee Rossouw will be raring to go against West Indies at home after a fantastic performance in the recently concluded HBL PSL 8. He is a fantastic cricket ball striker and, of course, the Trump Card for South Africa in the upcoming series.

Anrich Nortje

Nortje, South Africa’s fast and furious bowler, can provide breakthroughs in the early stages of T20I innings and can be a match-winner.

Possible Playing XI:

Aiden Markram (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Rilee Rossouw, David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen, Wayne Parnell, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi/ Bjorn Fortuin, Kagiso Rabada

West Indies (Match Odds – 3.20):

Preview:

This West Indian team lacks the aura of the team that won two T20 World Cups and appeared unbeatable at one point. They are rebuilding, but they have a lot of talented players who can make a difference in this series.

Much will be determined by Brandon King’s and Rovman Powell’s performances. King is a top-order batsman with 2303 T20 runs, including two hundreds. Powell, on the other hand, has already scored a century and four fifties in T20Is.

Nicholas Pooran is one batter to keep an eye on. The stylish left-handed batter can demolish any attack and will relish batting on these pitches.

The Windies have a well-balanced bowling attack. Alzarri Joseph, a right-arm fast bowler, was impressive in the Test and ODI series against South Africa, taking 12 and 6 wickets, respectively. He is accustomed to these conditions and will pose a threat to South African batters. Odean Smith may leak runs, but he has a knack for picking wickets. Akeal Hosein, a left-arm spinner, troubled the Proteas in ODIs, taking 5 wickets in 2 games at an economy rate of 6.35. We expect him to make an impact in this series as well.

Full Squad:

Rovman Powell (c), Yannic Cariah, Johnston Charles (wk), Kyle Mayers (vc), Jason Holder, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Alzarri Joseph, Akeal Hosein, Sheldon Cottrell, Brandon King, Shamarh Brooks, Obed McCoy, Raymon Reifer, Odean Smith, Romario Shepherd

Players to watch out for:

Akeal Hosein

Over the last two years, he has been a very consistent performer for West Indies. If he gets going, West Indies will have a great chance to win the series against South Africa.

Rovman Powell

He was appointed captain of the short version of white ball cricket. Powell is a fantastic cricket ball striker, and it will be interesting to see how he bats now that he is the captain.

Possible Playing XI:

Rovman Powell (c), Kyle Mayers, Brandon King, Shamarh Brooks, Nicholas Pooran, Johnson Charles (wk), Jason Holder, Yannic Cariah, Akeal Hosein, Odean Smith, Alzarri Joseph

South Africa vs West Indies Head to Head

South Africa and the West Indies have met in 16 T20 matches. South Africa has won 10 of these 16 games, while the West Indies has won six.

South Africa vs West Indies Head to Head Stats in T20s

	Matches Played	SA Won	WI Won	Tie	NR
Overall	16	10	6	0	0

South Africa vs West Indies Toss Prediction

This will be a brand-new pitch. The team that wins the toss will almost certainly bat first and attempt to post a massive total.

South Africa vs West Indies Pitch Report

At SuperSport Park, the average first-inning score is 177. The venue’s highest total is a mammoth 241-6 by South Africa against England in 2009. Four times, totals of more than 190 have been achieved here. The team batting first should aim for a target of around 200 runs.

The pitch at SuperSport Park in Centurion is batting-friendly, with plenty of runs available. The pitch will be fresh and hard, and the ball will come on nicely to the bat. The quicks will have some early movement, but batters will have a great time after that. On this wicket, they should be able to hit through the line as well. The weather in Centurion on game day is expected to be cool, with a few showers in the afternoon.

South Africa vs West Indies Prediction

In Twenty20 Internationals, South Africa leads the West Indies 10-6. They have also defeated them four times in the last five Twenty20 Internationals. The Proteas will be heavy favourites to win this match and the series. They have a lot of depth in the batting order and a lot of bowling variety. This West Indian T20 team is still finding its feet and is inexperienced. They will have a difficult time against the home team. Their batters will have a good time here, but their bowling will likely be their undoing due to a lack of bite and experience. Check out the odds at Cricbaba!

South Africa is the favourite to beat West Indies at the odds of 1.35.

South Africa vs West Indies Most Recommended Player for Bet:

Rilee Rossouw enters the T20I series in blistering form. Rossouw has two T20I hundreds in the last five games and will be a key player in the Proteas’ batting order.

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