India and South Africa have shared honours so far in the ongoing tour. The hosts outclassed the Asian giants to win the Test series 2-1 after which the visitors claimed revenge by winning the ODI series by a convincing 5-1 margin.
The two teams will now head into the three-match T20I series, which starts in Johannesburg on Sunday, February 18. Virat Kohli's men, who are No. 3 in ICC rankings, will be looking to make use of the momentum and to the hosts' woes.
India will have quite a few options to choose from as they have a solid bench strength for the shortest format of the game. All eyes will be on Suresh Raina as the seasoned campaigner makes a comeback after a year's absence from the senior team.
Raina likely to play first T20I
Raina is likely to get a berth in the playing XI as he provides the much-needed balance to the middle-order, which India have been lacking in the recent past. The Asian giants had tried the likes of Dinesh Karthik, Shreyas Iyer and Kedar Jadhav at the No. 4 spot without much success.
The Chennai Super Kings star's ability to bowl off-spin will also come in handy as Kohli would prefer an extra bowling option, especially in the T20I format.
Focus on MS Dhoni
Meanwhile, MS Dhoni's progress will also be followed as he had faced flak during for his underwhelming performances in a three-match T20I series against New Zealand last year at home. It will be interesting to see the position at which the wicketkeeper-batsman, given his tendency to take time before cutting loose.
India are unlikely to change their bowling combination, which helped them to a historic series win in the ODIs. Wrist spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal are certain to keep their places while Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Hardik Pandya are expected to be part of the pace attack in Johannesburg.
Duminy to lead South Africa
On the other hand, South Africa will be led by JP Duminy, who will have to cope up with the absence of some of the big names, including Faf du Plessis, Quinton de Kock and Kagiso Rabada.
Leg-spinner Imran Tahir has also been rested in a bid to give more opportunities to young spinners in Tabraiz Shamsi and Aaron Phangiso.
While Heinrich Klaasen, who impressed in the ODIs, is certain to make his T20I debut, South Africa also have included uncapped players Christiaan Jonker (batsman) and Junior Dala (fast bowler).
Predicted playing XIs
South Africa: JP Duminy (c), Reeza Hendricks, Farhaan Behardien, AB de Villiers, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Chris Morris, Andile Phehlukwayo, Tabraiz Shamsi, Dane Paterson, Aaron Phangiso.
India: Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal and Jasprit Bumrah.
Pitch and conditions
The third T20I between India women and their South Africa counterparts will be played at New Wanderers Stadium before the men's game. The wicket might get a bit slower for the men's match, which starts at 2:30 pm local time, 6 pm IST.
Sunday is expected to be a cloudy day in Johannesburg but the city is unlikely to receive any rainfall during the T20I matches.
