South Africa and Pakistan are ready to face each other in the first T20I of the three-match series in Cape Town on Friday.
Both teams have already faced each other in the five-day and 50-over format, where the home side came on top on each occasion.
However, Proteas will know that they will have a serious test ahead as they will face the best side in the world 20-over format.
But the home side will take some heart from the fact that they've won the fifth ODI at the same venue where Friday's match will be played.
In the batting department, the team will be relying on the likes of in-form Quinton de Kock, captain Faf du Plessis and hard-hitting David Miller to score bulk of the runs, whereas in the bowling department, the onus will be on the likes of Tabraiz Shamsi and Chris Morris to provide timely breakthroughs.
On the other hand, Pakistan, even after losing Test and ODI series, will enter the Friday's contest as favourites due to their red-hot form in the shortest format of the game.
In the batting department, the team will be relying on the likes of in-form Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez and captain Shoaib Malik to score bulk of the runs, whereas in the bowling department, the onus will be on the likes of leg-spinner Shadab Khan and his spin partner Imad Wasim to provide timely breakthroughs.
Newlands in Capet Town will be used as the venue for the contest,
South Africa and Pakistan are ready to face each other in the first T20I of the three-match series in Cape Town on Friday.
Both teams have already faced each other in the five-day and 50-over format, where the home side came on top on each occasion.
However, Proteas will know that they will have a serious test ahead as they will face the best side in the world 20-over format.
But the home side will take some heart from the fact that they've won the fifth ODI at the same venue where Friday's match will be played.
In the batting department, the team will be relying on the likes of in-form Quinton de Kock, captain Faf du Plessis and hard-hitting David Miller to score bulk of the runs, whereas in the bowling department, the onus will be on the likes of Tabraiz Shamsi and Chris Morris to provide timely breakthroughs.
On the other hand, Pakistan, even after losing Test and ODI series, will enter the Friday's contest as favourites due to their red-hot form in the shortest format of the game.
In the batting department, the team will be relying on the likes of in-form Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez and captain Shoaib Malik to score bulk of the runs, whereas in the bowling department, the onus will be on the likes of leg-spinner Shadab Khan and his spin partner Imad Wasim to provide timely breakthroughs.
Newlands in Capet Town will be used as the venue for the contest, which will be hosting its 15th T20I. Highest team score of 188-9 in a 20-over contest was registered by England in the match against Zimbabwe in 2007-08.
Key players:
Shadab Khan – 9 Cr
First in the list of key players features Pakistan's Shadab Khan. The right-arm leggie is one of the top performer in the shortest format of the game and had an outstanding 12 months with the ball in hand. Even though Shadab had a tough outing in the final ODI of the recently concluded series at the same venue where Friday's match will be played, but even then, looking at his past performances, he is the player to have in your team. The 20-year-old, who is valued at 9 Cr, has played 29 T20Is for Pakistan, where he has 42 wickets to his name.
Fakhar Zaman – 9 Cr
Second in the list of key players features Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman. The left-hander had a tough time ever since he landed in South Africa but played a fluent knock of 70 in the previous match which was played at the same venue where Friday's match will be played. Therefore, Zaman, who is valued at 9 Cr, might not prove to be a bad choice for your team. The 28-year-old has played 26 T20Is for Pakistan, where he has scored 706 runs at an average of 28.24 and strike-rate of 139.80.
Quinton de Kock – 10 Cr
Last in the list of key players features South Africa's Quinton de Kock. The wicketkeeper-batsman played a match-winning knock in the ODI series decider and is in great form with the bat. Therefore, he is the player to have in your team. De Kock has represented South Africa in 35 T20Is, where he has scored 874 runs at an average of 28.19.
