Team India are taking on South Africa in match number 37 of the 2023 World Cup at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday. The game can be termed as the clash between the two best sides in the competition so far. India are first in the points table, having won all their seven matches. The Proteas are second with 12 points from seven games.
In the context of semi-final qualification, the match does not mean a lot since both India and South Africa are assured of a top-four finish. However, neither side would want to have a poor game as it is important to maintain the winning rhythm. Some experts also feel that, given the form of the two sides, they could meet in the final again.
India were brilliant in their last match against Sri Lanka. Sent into bat, they posted 357/8 as Shubman Gill (92), Virat Kohli (88) and Shreyas Iyer (82) played terrific knocks Mohammed Shami (5/18) and Mohammed Siraj (3/16) then combined to bundle out Sri Lanka for 55. As for South Africa, they hammered New Zealand by 190 runs, coming up with a clinical all-round display.
Today's IND vs SA toss result
India have won the toss and decided to bat first. Rohit Sharma said about the decision:
“Looks like a good pitch. It’s more about what we want to do as a team. We wanted to challenge ourselves”
The Men in Blue are going in with an unchanged playing XI. For South Africa, Tabraiz Shamsi comes in for Gerald Coetzee.
IND vs SA - Today's match playing XIs
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (w), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj.
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (w), Temba Bavuma (c), Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi.
Today's IND vs SA pitch report
According to Ravi Shastri and Irfan Pathan, the surface looks better compared to the last game. The pitch has a lot of spots at one end, but not a lot from the other. It does look slow, there will not be a lot of bounce, so the batters need to adjust. There is some grass on the surface, could be a bat-first pitch.
Today's IND vs SA match players list
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Ishan Kishan, Shardul Thakur, Ravichandran Ashwin, Prasidh Krishna.
South Africa squad: Quinton de Kock (wk), Temba Bavuma (c), Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Marco Jansen, Gerald Coetzee, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Reeza Hendricks, Lizaad Williams.
IND vs SA - Today's match umpires
On-field umpires: Kumar Dharmasena, Paul Reiffel
TV umpire: Chris Brown
Match Referee: Andy Pycroft
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