It's round 6 of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 and it is Pakistan taking on South Africa in Chennai. Pakistan and South Africa are two of the most unpredictable teams in the world and they have performed just like that in this World Cup. While South Africa has thrashed big boys like Australia and England, they have been beaten by Netherlands. As for Pakistan, they lost to Afghanistan in the last match.
Ideally one would say a game in Chennai would favor the Asian team, but it's unlikely here. Pakistan spinners have been toothless while the South African batters have been ruthless.
South Africa: Temba Bavuma & Co are currently at the 2nd position of the points table with 8 points from 5 games. (4 wins and 1 loss). Their NRR is a staggering 2.370. Barring Netherlands, they have batted first in all 4 matches and posted 300+ totals(428 vs Sri Lanka, 311 vs Australia, 399 vs England and 382 vs Bangladesh). They beat Sri Lanka by 102 runs, Australia by 134 runs, England by 229 runs and Bangladesh by 149 runs.
All of their batters are in top form with Quinton de Kock being the leading run scorer in the tournament with 407 runs at an average of 81.40 and strike rate of 114.97 with 3 centuries. Heinrich Klaasen has so far scored 288 runs at an average of 57.6 and strike rate of 150.79,the highest in this tournament. Markram has amassed 265 runs at an average of 53 and strike rate of 123.83, including a 49 ball hundred against Sri Lanka. Rassie van der Dussen too have been among the runs with a hundred and a fifty, while David Miller and Marco Jansen have consistently finished the innings with quick fire knocks. Reeza Hendricks too have been among the runs who played last two games as replacement of Temba Bavuma.
Though the South African bowlers have bowled well, they have failed to clean up the tail quickly in all of the matches. But they have consistently taken wickets in the first powerplay. Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen have picked up 10 wickets from games while Gerald Coetzee has 10 from 4. Keshav Maharaj has been very miser with the ball giving runs at an economy rate of 4.61. Tarbaiz Shamsi, who is likely to play today, did well in the lone match that he played.
Pakistan: Babar & Co have gone from bad to worse in this tournament. They had a shaky start against Netherlands but managed to get home. They chased 345 against Sri Lanka to emerge victorious, but everything has gone downhill since then for them. They lost comprehensively against India, which was followed by a defeat against Australia. The worst was yet to come as they lost the next game against Afghanistan. They are right now at the 6th position in the points table with 4 points from 5 games.
Among the Pakistan batters, Abdullah Shafique(265 runs at an average of 63.75) and Mohammad Rizwan(302 runs at an average of 75.50) have been among the runs, though Rizwan failed in the last 2 games. Babar Azam has looked like gaining some form after fifties against India and Afghanistan. The pacers - Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali have blown hot and cold with picking up wickets as well as leaking runs. The spinners have been very poor with the ball so far.
Player to watch out for
Quinton De Kock: Quinton de Kock started off the tournament with two back to back hundreds, which was followed by two low scores. In the previous game against Bangladesh, he scored a magnificent 174(140) and a big knock is awaited from him today too.
Mohammad Rizwan: Mohammad Rizwan had a very good start to the tournament, which included 131(121)* vs Sri Lanka, in which Pakistan chased down 345. With 2 back to back failures, today can be the day when we can get to see another big knock from the Pakistan keeper.
Probable XI :
Pakistan : Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq/Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf/Mohammad Wasim Jr.
South Africa : 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, Lizaad Williams/Tabraiz Shamsi
Updates:
- Captain Temba, who missed out on the last match, is likely to return today.
Interesting stats and facts:
- South Africa have lost both the ODIs they have played in Chepauk
- Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen and David have a strike rate over 100 in India
- South Africa has beaten Pakistan thrice in ODI World Cups, while Pakistan have emerged victorious on 2 occasions, both coming in the last two World Cups.
Weather and Pitch report: The pitch is going to assist the spinners. However, as we have seen so far in this tournament, pacers and batters too thrive here. Chasing teams have won 3 of the 4 games played here in this World Cup.
Date & Time: 27 October 2023, 2.00 PM (IST)
Venue: MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai
Live Streaming: Star Sports network and Disney+ Hotstar
Dream 11:
