With the group stage finally completed, South Africa will now face off against mighty New Zealand in a finale to see who is crowned the Tri-Series champion. As this Black Caps unit has already beaten the Proteas twice in this tournament, they been by far the strongest side with a 4-0 record. Despite not having some key T20I players, such as Tim Seifert or Glenn Phillips, New Zealand has still found a way to shock everyone once again and showcase its surprise factor.
Recently coming off a mammoth victory against Zimbabwe when pieces like Daryl Mitchell were benched for rest, this Mitchell Santner-led group still found a way to dominate, plus have full motivation under their captain’s confidence.
Seeing that these matches are a huge step up from where they were 12+ months ago in the T20 World Cup, a victory here could be massive for New Zealand after already beating Pakistan 4-1 in a T20I series with most stars out. Meanwhile, South Africa has had a bit of a roller coaster ride through this Tri-Series as they managed to defeat Zimbabwe twice, but also lost to the Black Caps two times.
Although mainstay players like Aiden Markram and Kagiso Rabada haven’t played in this series, they have been very competitive with hopes of finally beating a team they had challenges with during the early part of this series. It will be quite noteworthy to see what type of moves Captain Rassie van Der Dussen calls for and if they can potentially change this South Africa unit’s fate.
New Zealand: The Batting Depth For This Unit Is Amazing
A major reason why the Black Caps have been impossible to defeat during this series is due to how deep they can bat and having major contributors all over their order. Opener Tim Seifert has had an amazing last couple of matches after delivering two half-centuries in a row and hitting above at above a 40 average in this series. Living up to his Mr. 360 name, this is someone who has crunched fours and hit mammoth maximums in some crucial run chases over New Zealand’s last four matches.
Tim Seifert his opposite side in Devon Conway, has continued finding gaps to get boundaries and also had one impactful 59 not-out knock against Zimbabwe two matches ago. Seeing that it is a lefty-righty combination, it becomes a nightmare to bowl at these two.
At one-down, Rachin Ravindra has continued making massive strides in the T20 game and showed what he could be during their last match if he tries going big for sixes. Knowing that Daryl Mitchell is behind him, this is someone who can bat very aggressively and tends to be a key closer for the unit in tense situations. Having scored 46 combined match-winning runs during his past two outings, the group has newcomer Bevon Jacobs right after him in this order. Someone who first made his name through domestic leagues, he has delivered a 44-run knock during the series and is a great bridge, along with Mark Chapman, between the top and middle order.
The other thing is New Zealand has replacement options as well, with Tim Robinson, a 75-run game-changing innings against South Africa, and Zachary Foulkers if things don’t go well. Rounding it out, Michael Bracewell has shown his power-hitting abilities down the order with a 24.46 average, while Mitchell Santner can provide a massive batting threat as well.
New Zealand: Bowling Continues Changing Matches Single-Handedly
Also, people can’t count out how unstoppable this New Zealand bowling attack is, and the way they can turn around matches. Although Matt Henry has been in and out of the lineup, he will definitely be the leader of this group’s pace attack while trying to add to his already fantastic 8 wickets during this Tri-Series. Being a piece that can always get people out at extremely important times, he has also managed to keep his economy around 7 to 8 runs per over during these matches.
On the other end, Jacob Duffy has improved so much and been able to create impactful spells with Henry in both powerplay plus death overs. As Duffy himself has been very economical in his past three starts, he has picked up 5 wickets and been someone who can consistently bowl at the same line. Will O’Rourke will also have a shot to bowl his full overs in this match at a solid pace, while Michael Bracewell closes out this pace attack.
Now going into their spin attack, Mitchell Santner will lead that department yet again as he is now up to 124 total T20I wickets taken. Being a lefty gives him an advantage to create a harder angle for batsmen to make cuts or sweep shots at, and even though his economy has been pretty high, he still has gotten four people out this series.
A lot of the pressure was off him because Ish Sodhi continued providing tons of wicket-taking prowess for this team, plus now he is the third-ever bowler to hit 150 wickets in this format. Even though he has only played two matches as of yet, he has still gotten the second most people out from any bowler in this unit and will most likely be a key contributor in these finals.
South Africa: Middle-Order Could Provide Tons Of Damage
For South Africa, their top order has really seemed to struggle throughout this series, with both Lhuan-Dre Pretorious and Reeza having one 40+ run performance combined. As those two openers are still trying to figure out their way, and Rassie van Der Dussen, who scored 88 runs in his past 4 innings, has not been consistent, it’s been the middle of this group that has carried a huge load.
One name that comes to mind is George Linde, as he has batted at a 53.0 average over his past couple of matches and was the only one who seemed to show up despite this unit’s struggles in matches against New Zealand. Rubin Hermann is another piece that’s made a key impact as he has knocked one half century and batting at a near 30 average in his 2-down spot.
A clear match-winner for this group is Dewald Brevis, as he’s gotten his side very close to victory multiple times and bats at a near 200 strike rate. Although he has gone for less runs in his past two innings, Brevis had a combined 76 runs during the first two batting chances and easily took on several bowlers.
Hoping that Corbin Bosch can come back for this match as well, this is someone who plays some very classy fours and tends to run quickly between wickets. If they play Senuran Muthuswamy, this group has a batting option down the order that will be able to hit sixes and also hit quick cameos before getting out. Seeing that Gerald Coetzee is around there as well, he will be another potential all-rounder that could hit crucial boundaries for this group at the end, as he averages 10.3 runs per innings in this format.
South Africa: Tons of Spinning and Pace Options
To round this team out, they do have a ton of bowling options that can provide a real wicket-taking threat. With the leader in Lungi Ngidi once again going to be a top-notch star, his pace has already allowed him to get three world-class wickets in this series, while he will be hungry for more.
Meanwhile, either Nandre Burger or Kwena Maphaka will come from the other end as left-handed pacers and try to match Ngidi’s intensity in a spell together. If Corbin Bosch is in full health, he will once again get his full four-over spell as well, and has bowled at 7.08 economy in this T20I format. Talking about spinners, Senuran Muthusamy should get his full length of overs, while George Linde may get around three after going for an economy less than 5.5 during the Tri-Series and getting three wickets.
Previous Matches
Matches Played: 17
South Africa Won: 11
New Zealand Won: 6
Last 5: New Zealand have won 3 of the last 5 matches
Prediction
NZ Bat 1st: They will score 170 to 180 runs for 6 wickets lost
SA Bat 1st: They will score 165 to 175 runs for 4 wickets lost
NZ Bat 2nd: They will win by 3 or 4 wickets or lose by 5 runs
South Africa Bat 2nd: They will win by 2 or 3 wickets or lose by 8 runs
Final Prediction: New Zealand will win by 6 runs if batting 1st and 4 wickets if batting 2nd
Key Players
South Africa
Lungi Ngidi: Can consistently hit the same line and length at 140 km/hr, plus is a key wicket-taker
Rassie van Der Dussen: Captain with amazing stroke shots that can also go big
Dewald Brevis: A world-class fielder who can score runs extremely fast
George Linde: Consistent run-scorer with great left-arm spinning ability
New Zealand
Rachin Ravindra: Currently in great T20I batting form after translating from other formats
Mitchell Santner: A top-notch leader who has taken tons of wickets
Ish Sodhi: Most experienced spinner New Zealand has, who is close to Tim Southee’s record
Tim Seifert: Wicket-keeper who has produced 50s regularly up the order
Also Read: ZIM vs SA : Wiaan Mulder Reflects On His Unbeaten 367 After Conversation With Brian Lara