Match Details
- Venue: SuperSport Park, Centurion
- Date: 16th February 2020
- Time: 6:00 PM IST
- League: England’s tour of South Africa
South Africa Preview
The T20i series is tied 1-1 after the hosts lost the 2nd match by a margin of 2 runs. This series has been the highlight of England’s tour of South Africa. Both teams have delivered equally competitive performances so far. While South Africa won by 1 run in the 1st T20i defending 176 runs, England bounced back defending 204 runs in the 2nd T20i.
Both teams lost 7 wickets in the last match while the hosts lost 8 and England lost 9 wickets in the 1st T20i. While Lungi Ngidi (3) and Andile Phehlukwayo (2) picked wickets for South Africa, they were quite expensive. The Proteas openers improved on their performance with a 92-runs opening stand as skipper Quinton de Kock scored 65 runs off 22 balls. Rassie van der Dussen was also impressive with his unbeaten 43 off 26 balls at number 4.
All-rounder Dwaine Pretorius was one of the least selected players among the fantasy teams. Yet, he delivered the best all-round performance for South Africa with figures of 1 for 17 in 3 overs followed by a 13-balls 25 runs inning. While David Miller was promoted to number 3, he failed to make it big yet again. Temba, Bavuma, de Kock, and van der Dussen will be the key batsmen for South Africa.
England Preview
England’s Tom Curran pulled off a win in a very tight final over defending 15 runs successfully. While he was expensive in his 4 overs conceding 45 runs, he picked 2 wickets at the right time. The hosts needed just 3 runs to win in the last 2 deliveries. Tom Curran dismissed Pretorius and Fortuin on back to back deliveries ensuring a win for England by 2 runs.
Earlier, Jason Roy continued his good form at the top, scoring 40 off 29 balls batting first. Ben Stokes made a comeback after his failure in the opening T20i and scored an unbeaten 47 off 30 balls at number 5. Buttler hasn’t fit well in the opening role while Bairstow continues to make significant contributions at number 3. Moeen Ali’s 39 off 11 balls at number 7 won him the man of the match award.
Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan, and Ben Stokes will be the players to watch out for in the English batting line-up. While Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali were successful and economical in their spells in the 1st T20i, they were wicketless and expensive in the 2nd T20i. Mark Wood, Tom Curran, and Chris Jordan will lead the pace attack for the visitors.
Match Prediction
England to win the match
The series looks well poised at this point with both South Africa and England winning 1 match each. The two teams are equally matched in both, bowling and batting departments. While England’s got Moeen Ali in the lower-order to finish things off on a high, the Proteas have Dwaine Pretorius in a similar role at number 7.
However, England will start as favorites given their batting strength with the likes of Ben Stokes and Morgan in the middle-order to follow explosive Roy and Bairstow at the top.
Fantasy Team Tips
- Most of the fantasy teams have sticked to similar line-ups from the previous match, except for more teams have selected Ben Stokes – 80.47%.
- Bairstow, Morgan, and Jason Roy continue to be the top most selected batsmen among the fantasy players for England. Quinton de Kock finds himself drafted in 92% of the fantasy teams as the wicket-keeper.
- While Andile Phehlukwayo was expensive in his spell, he did pick 2 wickets in the last innings. He remains the top choice for Proteas all-rounder with 81.5% teams having selected him.
- Both teams’ top and middle-order have consistent batsmen and it will be wise to rely on them in the 3rd and final T20i of the series. The bowlers have been expensive and even with a couple of wickets, they’re not expected to earn a lot of points.
Fantasy Team Prediction
- Wicket-Keepers – Quinton de Kock, Jonny Bairstow
- Batsmen – Eoin Morgan, Jason Roy, Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen
- All-rounders – Ben Stokes, Andile Phehlukwayo
- Bowlers – Tom Curran, Mark Wood, Lungi Ngidi
- Captain – Ben Stokes
- Vice-Captain – Rassie van der Dussen