South Africa vs Australia 2020, T20I series: 5 players to look forward to

South Africa have been going through an ongoing transition in the past few years. Many players left the country to opt for the financial security that the Kolpak deal would offer them. That left a big void in the team and it was getting tough for the current lot of players to fill. Faf du Plessis felt the burden of a Proteas team in transition the most as he decided to quit as captain from ODIs and Tests owing to recent results leaving way too many questions than answers for him and the team.

Quinton de Kock has taken over the mantle of leading the side in LOIs and has thrived so far personally as his batting has gone up by a notch post getting the captaincy. But despite that South Africa, weren't able to win the series against England recently, narrowly losing the fantastic and closely fought T20I series 1-2.

Australia on the other hand look far more stable and strong on paper in comparison to the Proteas. Aaron Finch and co look pretty sorted and they have prioritised the T20 format and have bought in T20 specialists which has improved their performances in the shortest form of the game where they have been rather lukewarm over the years.

This series holds significant importance for both teams with the ICC World T20 in the horizon. Both teams would look at sorting out their team combinations as they are heading into the marquee tournament.

Here's looking at five players to look forward to from the 3-match T20I series between South Africa and Australia starting from February 21st, 2020.

#5 Faf du Plessis

A fine batsmen, fantastic fielder and an asset for any T20 team - Faf du Plessis has unfortunately led the burden of captaining a Proteas team in transition affect his game. He is no longer the force he was say 12-15 months back. He has played only five T20Is for his country in the past few years.

Also see - India New Zealand schedule

With him stepping down from captaincy from ODIs and Tests after a string of disappointments across formats, he is back in the T20I squad as just a batsman for the series against Australia. Looking at the World T20 and the fact that South Africa's chances will largely depend on him being at his prime, it would be interesting to see how he goes about his business in this T20I series. Can he play freely and score big?

#4 Steven Smith

Steve Smith proved his mettle in Test cricket upon return post his one year ban. His heroics in the Ashes series proved the fact that form is temporary and class is permanent. He may not look extremely pleasing to the eye but he gets the job done. He has transitioned smoothly in ODIs too with constant contributions in the ICC Cricket World Cup and also in the ODIs that followed.

He got picked into the T20I team in the Australian home summer and has been effective. He would play the perfect foil to the attacking batsmen like Aaron Finch, David Warner and Marcus Stoinis in this T20I side. The biggest challenge for Smith in this three match T20I series will be how he can battle his mind and come out strong. As it was in South Africa where he along with David Warner and Cameron Bancroft got caught in the Sand Paper Gate scandal.

Note: All statistics as of February 19, 2020

#3 Pat Cummins

Aussie speedster Pat Cummins' stock as a force in international cricket has gone up in the past one year. He has been bowling consistently and has been the go to bowler for Australia across formats. In 2019 alone, Cummins picked up 59 wickets in Tests, 31 wickets in ODIs and 9 wickets from six games in T20Is.

Cummins value as a match-winning bowler's biggest show of strength came in the IPL Auctions where he was lapped up by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for a whopping INR 15.5 crores, the largest amount spend on one player in the history of the IPL. The pressure to perform in T20Is would increase significantly now for Pat Cummins. How will SA handle him? It remains to be seen.

#2 Quinton de Kock

South Africa's LOI skipper seems to be enjoying the skipper's role. His batting has taken on a different dimension against England especially in the recently concluded T20I series against England. He was hitting the ball really well and is giving the perfect start his team requires.

With the experience of Faf du Plessis and Kagiso Rabada returning to the side for the upcoming series, it would be good for him to get the guidance and support of other experienced campaigners especially when they will be up against a strong and formidable Australia.

#1 David Warner

David Warner- 2020 Australian Cricketer of the Year

David Warner made all the right noises upon his return from the one year hiatus from international cricket. A superlative IPL 2019 where he was the Orange Cap winner despite featuring only in 12 games, followed by a strong showing in ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 made him convincing winner of the Australia's Cricketer of the Year for 2019-2020.

He had a rather poor return to Test cricket with his technique to the moving ball getting exposed in England but he came back strongly in the home Tests against Pakistan and New Zealand. He will be looking at shutting down everyone who will be looking to get a piece of him when he plays again in South Africa by scoring big and creating an impact.

He will up against the likes of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje and will be up for the challenge. The battle is all in the mind for both players - Warner and Smith on this tour. How they cope and deliver would be intriguing to watch.