India vs South Africa, T20 World Cup Final: Key Matchups to watch out for. India will be playing their third final while South Africa their first.
After 54 games in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, India and South Africa have progressed to the final. It will be the third final in the event's history for the inaugural champions.
The Rohit Sharma-led side have a lead of 14-11 in the shortest format of the game over South Africa. Regarding the T20 World Cups, the Proteas have won two out of the six occasions in the head-to-head. In their last meeting in the competition, the Aiden Markram-led team blew away India at Perth.
Let’s take a look at the key match-ups in the game
India openers vs South Africa pacers
India captain Rohit Sharma has been in fabulous touch in this T20 World Cup 2024 with 248 runs. In seven innings during the powerplay, he has smashed 151 runs at a strike rate of 145.19.
Rohit hasn’t been comfortable facing Kagiso Rabada, managing 52 T20I runs in 49 balls, at a strike rate of 106.1. The batter has smashed Rabada for just five boundaries and three sixes while being dismissed twice. When it comes to facing Anrich Nortje’s pace, Rohit has shown his class with 23 unbeaten T20I runs in 10 balls.
His opening partner, Virat Kohli, has struggled in the ninth edition of the tournament with just 75 runs. The average is just over 10 and the strike rate is exactly 100 with a best of 37.
Rabada has troubled Kohli too, giving away 15 T20I runs in 16 balls, besides dismissing him once. While facing Nortje, the former India captain has notched up only 17 T20I runs in 16 balls. The pacer has already got the better of the batter once.
Even though Rohit is yet to face Marco Jansen in T20Is, Kohli has found him relatively easy to face. In 11 balls, he has 16 unbeaten T20I runs in the face-off.
Read More: T20 World Cup 2024, IND vs ENG: Axar, Kuldeep 3-fers derail England chase; India reach third Final
Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya vs SA bowlers
Suryakumar Yadav is the backbone of India’s middle order. In seven innings, he has collected 196 runs in this tournament at a strike rate of 137.06. When it comes to facing the Protea chinaman bowler, Tabraiz Shamsi, SKY has smashed 34 T20I runs in 28 balls, along with one dismissal.
However, the Mumbai-born has loved the thundering pace of Nortje. The latter has been blown away for 31 unbeaten T20I runs in 18 balls, at a strike rate of 172.20. Suryakumar Yadav has belted left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj for 69 T20I runs in 43 balls. He has six fours and four sixes in the battle and is yet to be dismissed.
Nortje has bowled 10 T20I balls to his IPL captain Rishabh Pant, who has just six runs in the face-off. The left-hander has also been dismissed once in the process. Hardik Pandya, however, has used the bowler’s pace for 20 unbeaten T20I runs in 14 balls.
While facing Shamsi, the India all-rounder has nailed him for 26 unbeaten T20I runs in 15 balls. Maharaj, however, has kept him calm, conceding seven runs in 12 balls in this format.
Quinton de Kock, Reeza Henricks, Aiden Makram vs India pacers
The South Africa wicket-keeper batter Quinton de Kock hasn’t faced Jasprit Bumrah in T20Is yet. But when it comes to facing him in T20s, the left-hander has just eight runs in nine balls, besides getting dismissed once. The same goes for Aiden Markram, who has nine T20 runs in 10 balls against the Ahmedabad-born pacer.
The SA captain has loved facing Arshdeep Singh, drilling him for 51 unbeaten T20I runs in 39 balls. The left-arm pacer, however, has made life tough for de Kock. The latter has only 12 T20I runs against Arshdeep at a strike rate of 100, besides getting dismissed twice.
Reeza Hendricks, who has struggled in this tournament, has mastered playing the left-arm pacer. He has 15 unbeaten T20I runs in seven balls against Arshdeep. The opener, however, has 11 runs in 13 T20I balls against Bumrah.
David Miller, Tristan Stubbs and Heinrich Klassen against India spinners
India are blessed, given the way Kuldeep Yadav has performed in this competition so far. The chinaman bowler has 10 wickets in four innings, at an economy of under six. His average is under 10, and that shows how clinical he has been on the Caribbean tracks. Kuldeep has dismissed David Miller once, giving away 10 T20I runs at a strike rate of 100.
Heinrich Klassen has played the 29-year-old bowler pretty well. The SA batter has drilled him for a six, on two T20I balls he has faced off Kuldeep. Even in 15 T20 balls in the face-off, the batter has powered the bowler for unbeaten 24 runs.
The SunRisers Hyderabad batter has also smacked Axar Patel for 34 T20I runs in 21 balls, without getting dismissed. Miller too has a favourable match-up against Patel with an unbeaten 53 T20I runs in 30 balls. Even while facing Ravindra Jadeja, he has drilled him for 23 T20I runs in 13 balls, without being dismissed.
Tristian Stubbs hasn’t faced Kuldeep much in T20Is. But both of them play in the same franchise in the IPL. So, it will be a different challenge knowing each other’s strengths and weaknesses. It will be the same story for him against Axar Patel.
The final of the T20 World Cup 2024 will be played on June 29, at the Kensington Oval, Barbados.