After a closely fought ODI series, India and South Africa will square off in a five-match T20I series, beginning on December 9, in Cuttack.
South Africa arrived in India to play two Tests, three ODIs and five T20Is, and while they whitewashed India in the Tests, they were beaten 2-1 in the 50-over contests. The attention will now shift to the T20Is, with the World Cup set to begin in two months.
India's last T20I outing was against Australia, which they won 2-1, while South Africa were beaten 2-1 by Pakistan in Pakistan before the India tour.
India vs South Africa T20Is: Team News
India are welcoming Hardik Pandya, who hasn’t played international cricket since the Asia Cup, back to the side, while Test and ODI captain Shubman Gill has also returned to full fitness after missing the Guwahati Test and three ODIs. Jasprit Bumrah is also set to feature after being rested for the ODIs.
South Africa, meanwhile, have been boosted by the return of Anrich Nortje after a long injury layoff. David Miller also makes a comeback to the T20I squad after a year, while Tony de Zorzi and Kwena Maphaka miss out due to injuries.
Find the full squad news for the India vs South Africa T20Is here.
India squad
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Jitesh Sharma, Sanju Samson, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav.
South Africa squad
Aiden Markram (c), Ottneil Baartman, Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Quinton de Kock, Tony de Zorzi, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Tristan Stubbs.
The T20I series begins in Cuttack on December 9, with Mullanpur, Dharamshala, Lucknow and Ahmedabad to host the other four fixtures on December 11, 14, 17 and 19, respectively.
Also read: IND vs SA T20Is, where to watch live: TV channels, live streaming and live score
1st T20I, India vs South Africa
vs
Latest ICC men's T20I team rankings before IND vs SA T20I series
India enter the series sitting at the top of the men’s T20I rankings with 272 rating points, while South Africa are fifth. Australia, England and New Zealand are second, third and fourth, respectively.
West Indies, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan complete the top 10.
| Position | Team | Matches | Points | Rating |
| 1 | India | 66 | 18251 | 272 |
| 2 | Australia | 41 | 11199 | 267 |
| 3 | England | 45 | 11609 | 258 |
| 4 | New Zealand | 49 | 13318 | 251 |
| 5 | South Africa | 49 | 11751 | 240 |
| 6 | West Indies | 57 | 14424 | 236 |
| 7 | Pakistan | 68 | 17149 | 235 |
| 8 | Sri Lanka | 43 | 10951 | 228 |
| 9 | Bangladesh | 64 | 14673 | 222 |
| 10 | Afghanistan | 43 | 9895 | 220 |
| 11 | Ireland | 34 | 7266 | 202 |
| 12 | Zimbabwe | 61 | 13190 | 200 |
Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.
