NEW DELHI: South Africa opt to bowl in the first T20I as the two sides return to the fast paced format after a busy Test and ODI stretch. The opener in Cuttack sets the tone for a high scoring series with both teams arriving with clear intent as they look to take early control and fine tune their plans for the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Playing XI of both teams
India welcome Shubman Gill back as vice captain as he shakes off the neck issue he picked up during the Kolkata Test. Sanju Samson misses out with the wicket keeping slot going to Jitesh Sharma. India also rest wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav for this game and trust Varun Chakaravarthy to take charge of the middle overs.
Playing XI: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma(w), Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh
South Africa bring firepower too with David Miller returning after a long gap. The left hand striker gives their engine room a boost and will look to control the chase phase. Anrich Nortje also returns to the line up as his pace adds weight to their attack.
Playing XI: Quinton de Kock(w), Aiden Markram(c), Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Lutho Sipamla, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje
Captains speak
Suryakumar Yadav said the pitch left them thinking for a moment as “it was looking a bit greener yesterday” but added he was happy to bat first. He said dew would stay for long spells and noted “let's not think about it have it as a challenge.”
Aiden Markram said they chose to bowl first because “quite a bit of dew” would be around through the night. He said this series came at the perfect stage of their build up and noted they “cannot simulate these conditions back in South Africa” which makes this contest vital for their World Cup readiness.
