India vs South Africa Live Score Updates, 1st ODI: Ind vs SA, After closing the T20 international series on a strong note, the young Team India is all set to face South Africa in the ODI format of the game today. KL Rahul is leading the Indian cricket team in the absence of senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The South African team is also pretty young with Aiden Markram at the helm.
The ODI series marks the return of some crucial players like KL Rahul, Sanju Samson, Yuzvendra Chahal, etc.
Speaking about Samson, captain KL Rahul had said, “Sanju will bat in the middle order. That is the role he has played whenever he has played ODI cricket.”
“He will bat at No. 5 or 6. For now I am going to keep wickets, but if there is an opportunity for him in that role, he will definitely at some point in the series.”
Just ahead of the first ODI match against South Africa, Deepak Chahar was forced to pull out due to some medical emergency in his family. The BCCI has decided to replace the pacer with Akash Deep.
India vs South Africa Live Score Updates, 1st ODI: Head-to-head records
In the realm of ODI cricket, South Africa has asserted its dominance over India. Out of the 91 total matches played between the two teams, the Proteas emerged victorious in 50, while India secured wins in 38 matches. Additionally, three matches concluded with no clear result. Notably, when contests took place on South African soil, the advantage tilted significantly in favor of the Proteas, who triumphed in 25 ODI matches against India.
India vs South Africa Live Score Updates, 1st ODI: Weather forecast
There is optimism for the first One Day International (ODI) as current weather predictions indicate a negligible 0% likelihood of rain in Johannesburg on 17 December.
India vs South Africa Live Score Updates, 1st ODI: Expected playing XI
India: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (C), Sanju Samson, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan
South Africa: Reeza Hendricks, Tony de Zorzi, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram (C), Heinrich Klaasen (WK), David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi, Nandre Burger, Lizaad Williams
India vs South Africa Live: What’s India’s record at Wanderers?
The Wanderers has always been an intimidating stadium for the away teams. Out of the 8 times, India played at the Wanderers, they have recorded just three wins and only one of those was against South Africa.
India vs South Africa Live: Last-minute changes in KL Rahul’s team brings opportunity for new players
Índia have been forced to make changes to their squad for the upcoming ODI and Test series against the Proteas.
With Deepak Chahar withdrawing due to a family medical emergency, India has named Akash Deep as his replacement in the squad.
Mohammed Shami, the top wicket-taker at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, who had been originally named in the Test squad has now been ruled out due to fitness concerns after not being cleared by the BCCI Medical Team.
India vs South Africa Live: Check the full squads here
South Africa squad: Reeza Hendricks, Tony de Zorzi, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram(c), Heinrich Klaasen(w), David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Keshav Maharaj, Nandre Burger, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lizaad Williams, Wiaan Mulder, Ottniel Baartman, Mihlali Mpongwana, Kyle Verreynne.
India squad: Rajat Patidar, Sai Sudharsan, Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w/c), Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Tilak Varma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Akash Deep.
India vs South Africa Live: Shubman Gill rested, misses opportunity to topple Sachin Tendulkar’s record
Shubman Gill, who finished an astounding year, has been rested for the Test series against South Africa. Despite ending the year with an impressive 1584 runs at an average of 63.36, he misses a chance to surpass one of Sachin Tendulkar’s record.
Gill ends 2023 with 1584 ODI runs at an average of 63.36. Three more innings may have given him an outside chance to go past Sachin Tendulkar’s record tally of 1894 from 1998.
India vs South Africa Live: Will rain play spoilsport?
While playing in South Africa, one always keeps an eye on the weather conditions as we saw in the T20 international when the first T20 got washed out while the rain threat continued to loom in the other two.
However, the first ODI is likely to remain safe from rains as the weather predictions forecast 0% chances of rain in Johannesburg on 17 December. The temperature is expected to range between 23 degrees Celsius to 27 degrees Celsius.
India vs South Africa Live: Sanju Samson finds spot in KL Rahul’s team
KL Rahul is all set to lead the Indian side in the three-match ODI series against South Africa, starting 17 December. The wicketkeeper-batter will lead a relatively inexperienced side bereft of some of the big names, including Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah amongst others.
Ahead of the ODI series, Rahul delved into the roles of two pivotal players, Sanju Samson and Rinku Singh
“Sanju will bat in the middle order,” Rahul said in the press conference before the first ODI. “That is the role he has played whenever he has played ODI cricket.
“He will bat at No. 5 or 6. For now I am going to keep wickets, but if there is an opportunity for him in that role, he will definitely at some point in the series.”
KL also spoke glowingly of Rinku Singh, hinting at a possible ODI debut in the upcoming series.
“He [Rinku Singh] has shown what a good player he is,” Rahul added. “We all knew how skilled he is having watched him in the IPL, but what has been really good to see has been the temperament he has shown in the T20I series, and the game awareness and calmness under pressure. It was refreshing to see.
“He has performed well across formats in domestic cricket, so yes he will get his opportunity.”
India vs South Africa Live: How does the pitch look? Check update here
The pitch of Wanderers Stadium has historically been favorable for batting, but the presence of continuous rain could introduce moisture, potentially providing assistance to the bowlers. Despite these challenges, significant scores have been achieved on this pitch in the T20 format, suggesting that it tends to be conducive to high-scoring encounters.
India vs South Africa 1st ODI Live: Head-to-head records
In the One Day International format of cricket, South Africa has dominated India. The Proteas clinched victory in 50 games out of the total 91 played while India managed to secure a win in 38 games. Three games ended in no result. South Africa has the upper hand when it comes to the games held in South Africa as they won 25 ODI matches against India.
India vs South Africa 1st ODI Live: When and where to watch
The 1st ODI will be hosted at the New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg. One can watch the 1st ODI between India and South Africa on the Disney+Hotstar app and website from 1:30 pm IST onwards.
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