When the two teams play in the fifth and final Twenty20 International on Friday in Ahmedabad, India would hope that the difficult home assignment against South Africa, which has revealed a few weaknesses and raised critical issues about selection, concludes on a positive note.
India won the ODI series after being blanked 0-2 in the Tests, and they now hold an unbeatable 2-1 lead in the T20Is after the fourth game was called off on Wednesday owing to bad weather in Lucknow.
With less than two months till the T20 World Cup, captain Suryakumar Yadav and his deputy Shubman Gill are facing difficulties of their own, so Gautam Gambhir, the beleaguered head coach, may find solace in the fact that India cannot lose the series.
In the one format where he is guaranteed a spot in the Indian XI, Suryakumar’s form has drastically declined for someone who was recently ranked as the world’s top batter. Every setback for Suryakumar, who has averaged a pitiful 14.20 for his 213 runs in 18 innings in 20 games this year without a single half-century, is making the Indian camp more worried.
The Gill dilemma compounds it. Suryakumar may have been put on notice a few months ago by Gill’s return as vice-captain in the T20I format, but his lackluster batting performance since his return and the most recent injury setback further hurt the team’s chances.
Gill is expected to miss the last Twenty20 International due to a toe injury sustained before the fourth Twenty20 International. India would like to proceed cautiously, especially since Sanju Samson is a ready option for the top order spot.
Despite being under injury after suffering a blow to his toe prior to the fourth match, Gill landed in Ahmedabad on Thursday.
It is unclear if Samson would be chosen to replace the Indian vice-captain in the fifth Twenty20 International, or if Gill, who has also battled for runs, will be available for selection.
Gill had already missed the most of the two-Test match due to a neck ailment he sustained during the series opener in Kolkata, which also brought attention to his hectic schedule and expanding list of responsibilities in Indian cricket across formats.
Samson was never a good fit in the lower order because, aside from the top spot, his lowest batting position is No. 5, where the right-handed batsman has only managed to score 138 runs at an average of 23 in eight games.
However, his three T20I hundreds and one half-century have all come at the top spot in 14 innings, so the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter would be eager to make it count if Gill is unable to play in the last match.
Apart from this, India’s all-rounders, Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube, have played in all three of the team’s games thus far. Arshdeep Singh is starting to establish a partnership with Harshit Rana with the ball and is coming into his element in the pace attack.
Jasprit Bumrah joined the team’s camp prior to the fourth match after missing the third Twenty20 International for personal reasons.
With 6 wickets, Varun Chakravarthy is India’s top bowler in the series and will have to contend with a batting-friendly pitches.
India has a 2-1 lead in the five-match series, and this Friday’s match will be their final one of the calendar year. A three-match ODI and five-match T20I series between India and New Zealand will begin on January 11.
Friday’s match will give South Africa, who have been inconsistent throughout the T20I series, especially with the bat, the chance to finish with the pleasure of drawing a series against India. The Proteas may consider replacing Reeza Hendricks, who hasn’t found his groove on this tour, with Aiden Markram in the top order.
However, after having mediocre performances in each of the series’ three finished games, the visitors would also like the young and dangerous Dewald Brevis to regain his form. Although Lungi Ngidi and Ottneil Baartman have done a respectable job with the ball, South Africa has also missed strong knocks from Marco Jansen, which made the ODI series so closely contested.
Teams (from):
India: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Sanju Samson (wk), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Shahbaz Ahmed, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy
South Africa: Aiden Markram (c), Dewald Brevis, Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Corbin Bosch, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Ottneil Baartman, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Lutho Sipamla
