India vs South Africa | India will finally begin their World Cup 2019 campaign o Wednesday as they take on a beleaguered South Africa side at the The Rose Bowl in Southampton.
The Virat Kohli led team will be the last to play their opening match of the tournament, while South Africa is going through a mini-crisis at the moment - after facing defeats at the hands of England and Bangladesh and facing several injury setbacks.
Despite India having not played a single match yet, Kohli and company look a relaxed unit. For the Indian skipper, the bigger concern will be to pick a side that has all the bases covered. At the pre-match press conference, Kohli hinted that looking at the conditions, India might opt for three seam bowlers.
Jasprit Bumrah, the top ranked ODI bowler, will lead the bowling line-up with Mohammed Shami and Bhuvaneshwar Kumar making up the cast. Kohli, in his first 50-over World Cup as captain, is the key to India's batting, and a lot will also depend on the kind of starts Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma can give India.
Match details and where to watch:
India vs South Africa will be played at the Rose Bowl, Southampton. The match starts at 3 pm IST.
The World Cup 2019 India vs South Africa match will be telecast on Star Sports 1 HD, Star Sports 1 with English Commentary and Star Sports 1 Hindi, Star Sports 1 Hindi HD with Hindi Commentary. The live streaming of the World Cup 2019 India vs South Africa match will be available on Hotstar.
Team News
India will have a full-strength squad to choose from with Kedar Jadhav recovering from his injury as he was seen taking part in two full-fledged net sessions. However, it remains to be seen if he will be picked as he vies for a place in the XI with Ravindra Jadeja.
South Africa have been dealt two huge setbacks with injuries to Dale Steyn, who has been ruled out of the tournament and Lungi Ngidi, who is out with a hamstring strain complicating matters further for the struggling side. Hashim Amla, who was hit in the helmet in the opening match, is expected to make his return today.
Predicted 11
India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli (c), KL Rahul, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Kedar Jadhav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (WK), Aiden Markram, Faf du Plessis (C), Hashim Amla, Rassie van der Dussen, JP Duminy, Chris Morris, Andil Phehlukwayo, Kasigo Rabada, Beuran Hendricks and Imran Tahir.
Dream 11 Picks: Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Shikhar Dhawan, David Miller, Quinton De Kock,
Hardik Pandya, Kedhar Jadhav
Bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah, Kagiso Rabada, Imran Tahir, Kuldeep Yadav