After sweeping South Africa in the two-match Test series, Pakistan are all set to take on the visiting team in the three-match T20I series, starting from 11th February, Thursday, at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
The Men in Green are coming into this T20I series after losing to the Black Caps 1-2 in New Zealand. The Proteas went on to lose their three-match T20I series against England in November and early December 2020. Interestingly, the visiting side is coming into this series with a lot of new faces and is being called the second-string side for a reason.
Pakistan, led by Babar Azam, will aim to continue their winning momentum as the side consists of some big names like Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Afridi, and the in-form Hasan Ali. Babar Azam has been in red-hot form in shorter formats for a long time. Pakistan will also look forward to getting a better spot in the T20I team rankings by defeating the visitors in all three games.
South Africa are being captained by Heinrich Klaasen. There are a very few big names to talk about in the squad as the likes of Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis and Kagiso Rabada are not part of this three-match series. In the absence of senior members, Andile Phehlukwayo, George Linder, David Miller will take care of the proceedings.
Squads to choose from
Pakistan
Babar Azam (c), Aamer Yamin, Amad Butt, Asif Ali, Danish Aziz, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Afridi, Usman Qadir, Zafar Gohar, Zahid Mehmood, Faheem Ashraf, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hussain Talat, Iftikhar Ahmed.
South Africa
Heinrich Klaasen (c), Nandre Burger, Okuhle Cele, Junior Dala, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, George Linde, Janneman Malan, David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Ryan Rickleton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lutho Sipamla, Jon-Jon Smuts, Jacques Snyman, Glenton Stuurman, Pite van Biljon.
Predicted Playing 11
Pakistan
Haider Ali, Babar Azam, Hussain Talat, Mohammad Rizwan, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Usman Qadir
South Africa
Janneman Malan, Jon-Jon Smuts, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, George Linde, Dwaine Pretorius, Andile Phehlukwayo, Junior Dala, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lutho Sipamla
Match Details
Match: Pakistan vs South Africa, 1st T20I
Date: 11th February at 4:00 PM IST
Venue: Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Pitch Report
The last T20I played at this venue was a decent scoring affair with spinners and pacers both getting enough momentum from the wicket.
Batsmen will have to spend some time getting accustomed to the pitch before going for shots. Chasing can be a good choice on this tricky wicket.
With no rain predicted during the game, we can expect a close contest.
PAK vs SA 1st T20I Dream11 Fantasy Suggestions
Fantasy Suggestion #1: Mohammad Rizwan, Heinrich Klaasen, Babar Azam, Haider Ali, Janneman Malan, Faheem Ashraf, Andile Phehlukwayo, Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali, Usman Qadir, Tabraiz Shamsi
Captain: Babar Azam, Vice-Captain: Faheem Ashraf
PAK vs SA 1st T20I Dream11 Fantasy Suggestions
Fantasy Suggestion #2: Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam, Haider Ali, David Miller, Reeza Hendricks, Faheem Ashraf, George Linde, Dwaine Pretorius, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi
Captain: David Miller, Vice-Captain: Haider Ali
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