Temba Bavuma will not play the first fixture of South Africa’s three-ODI series against Pakistan as he manages his workload ahead of two crucial Tests over the festive season. Aiden Markram will captain the team for the ODI opener in Paarl, with Temba Bavuma set to return later in the series.
While South Africa have some problem-solving to do, Pakistan will be looking to get some stability going after a period of intense upheaval. Rainbow nation South Africa (SA) will continue to host Pakistan (PAK) in the ongoing tour, as the focus shifts to the ODI format. The two teams will clash in a three-match ODI series, starting on Tuesday, December 17. Notably the first ODI will be played at Boland Park, in Paarl.
SA vs PAK : Previous Performances
Speaking of the hosts first, South Africa recently clinched the T20I series quite convincingly with a 2-0 margin. The third and final T20I was abandoned due to consistent rains. After dominating in the first T20I, the second game was seemingly given that the visitors managed to go all guns blazing against Proteas. However, the ODIs will be a different ball game as the hosts have picked a strong playing XI.
In the recently ended T20I series, South Africa thrived in their home condition. The final T20I match was abandoned due to rain, the host named the series by a 2-0 margin. After sealing the first match by an 11-run victory, South Africa showcased exceptional skill in the second T20I clash.
After showcasing bowling dominance, South Africa thrived with the bat in the second innings. While opening the innings, Reeza Hendricks’ explosive 117-run innings fired up the contest. Rassie van der Dussen’s unbeaten innings of 66 runs secured the victory. As the new series begins within a day, South Africa will try hard to keep the domination alive.
On the flip side, Pakistan’s struggle on the international stage become longer. They ended up the T20I series against South Africa without a win. In the first T20I, they failed to chase down the 184-run target. Captain Mohammad Rizwan was the lone warrior in the second innings. He played an innings of 74 runs in 62 balls. South Africa defeated them by 11 runs. In the second game, the ‘Men in Green’ struggled hard as they failed to defend 206 runs. Saim Ayub’s incredible unbeaten innings of 98 runs got wasted. The bowlers failed to make an impact in the game. After the disappointing whitewash, Pakistan will try hard to bounce back in the ODI series.
On the other hand, after having a good show in the second T20I, Pakistan lost the plot in the middle overs and eventually not only lost the game but also the series. Amid selection and coaching-related controversies back home, Pakistan will hope to put up a good show in the ODI series opener and make a comeback on the tour. Given that they will be playing the host of the CT 2025, the Green Shirts will want to explore their combinations and have a settled team before the mega cricket carnival gets underway.
SA vs PAK : Head to Head
In the ODI format, these two teams have faced each other 83 times, with South Africa winning 52 matches and Pakistan securing 30 victories, while 1 game ended with no result. A closely contested series is expected as both teams bring a mix of experience and young talent to the table.
| Matches Played | 83 |
| Won by South Africa | 52 |
| Won by Pakistan | 30 |
| Tied | 00 |
| No Result | 01 |
| First-ever Fixture | March 08, 1992 |
| Most-recent Fixture | October 27, 2023 |
SA vs PAK : Pitch Report
The surface of Boland Park has been quite batting-friendly in nature. Going by the facts, in the last three years, out of the 10 games played, teams have preferred to bat first in a bid to put up a big score to put the opposition under the run chase pressure. The average score at this venue is close to 240 runs. Interestingly, in one instance, South Africa went on a run rampage as they scored a mammoth 353 against the Asian side, Bangladesh.
The pitch is anticipated to be slow and spin-friendly, providing a significant advantage to spinners. Captains winning the toss are likely to opt for batting first to capitalize on the favorable early conditions. However, as the match progresses, the surface is expected to deteriorate, making batting increasingly challenging and adding to the bowlers’ dominance.
On the flip side, Proteas suffered a massive 78-run defeat against India in 2003. Hence anything close to 300 runs or in excess can prove to be a good total in Paarl. Therefore, the skipper winning the toss will be tempted to bat first and hit the ground running in the upcoming ODI match. On the weather front, there is no real threat of rain as it happened in the third T20I match recently. The clouds are expected to remain at bay and the game should go ahead without any rain interruptions on Tuesday.
The pitch is expected to be good for batting. Spinners have received some assistance here, especially in the latter half of the game. With the new ball, the pacers will have movement, and the batters will also enjoy their time on the crease. It will be a cloudy day at Paarl but rain is not predicted. The temperature will be around 22-23 degrees Celsius during the game.
SA vs PAK : Big Picture : Temba Bavuma to miss first ODI as South Africa, Pakistan begin last leg of Champions Trophy prep work
Temba Bavuma will not play the first fixture of South Africa’s three-ODI series against Pakistan as Temba Bavuma manages his workload ahead of two crucial Tests over the festive season. Aiden Markram will captain the team for the ODI opener in Paarl, with Temba Bavuma set to return later in the series.
Though these matches are the first and last South Africa will have with their strongest available squad before the Champions Trophy, they will have the challenge of juggling between preparation for the big event and ensuring their Test players are kept fresh. Eight of the ODI squad – Temba Bavuma, Markram, Tony de Zorzi, Tristan Stubbs, Ryan Rickelton, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj and Kagiso Rabada – were involved in the 2-0 Test series win over Sri Lanka and are expected to play against Pakistan as well.
South Africa will be concerned about their quick bowlers in particular because they already have four on the sidelines and cannot risk one of Rabada and Jansen joining them.
Wiaan Mulder (broken finger) is in a race against time to be fit for Boxing Day while Lungi Ngidi (hip injury) and Gerald Coetzee (groin niggle) are out until January, and Nandre Burger (lower back stress fracture) is out for the season. Anrich Nortje, who may have been considered for the ODIs to relieve Rabada and/or Jansen, is out with a broken toe and has also opted out of red-ball cricket for now as he works his way back from a series of injuries.
Temba Bavuma acknowledged that South Africa find themselves in a “tricky” position, knowing that the Tests are the priority of the summer. They need one more win to guarantee a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final. At the same time, they need to finalize their Champions Trophy combination, especially since they will not have a full-strength side available for the tri-series in Pakistan (with New Zealand) that precedes the tournament. That takes place in the latter stages of the SA20.
While South Africa have some problem-solving to do, Pakistan will be looking to get some stability going after a period of intense upheaval. They would have been looking forward to touring South Africa with Gary Kirsten in charge and the inside knowledge that would have given them, but those hopes ended in late October when he resigned. They have since been on a roundabout of coaching and administrative changes – Jason Gillespie is gone now, too – but their results have trended well.
Pakistan go into the contest on the back of consecutive come-from-behind series wins in Zimbabwe and, more impressively, Australia. While they rested Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi Naseem Shah and some of their other senior players for the series against Zimbabwe, they have got their full-strength squad back for these ODIs.
They will look to repeat the template that worked wonders in Australia. In that series, they went into each game with just four fast bowlers and no specialist spinner, effectively banking on pace to wrap the opposition innings up inside 40 overs. It worked a charm, with no Australia innings lasting longer than 35 overs, and Australia bowled out in each of the last two games as Pakistan sealed a series win.
If their quicks are in similarly lethal form, they will sniff an opportunity to do that again in South Africa against a batting unit that will not have their in-form captain to call upon. However, they will be mindful the first two venues are Paarl and Cape Town, where spinners tend to do well, and so may need a rethink.
It is also the last bilateral series Pakistan will play ahead of the Champions Trophy they host early next year, with only the short triangular series to go before that tournament begins. But Pakistan have got their weakest format out of the way, and they now begin a series in their strongest, which can only be good for them.
SA vs PAK : Vital Stats that matters
- In October, South Africa managed to win the three-match ODI series played against Ireland in the UAE.
- Temba Bavuma, Kagiso Rabada and Heinrich Klaasen have shown excellent form for South Africa in one-day format.
- Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Afridi are bankable performers for Pakistan in limited-overs format.
SA vs PAK : Team News for SA and PAK
South Africa :
Captain Temba Bavuma marked his comeback and will lead the side in the upcoming series. Besides Temba Bavuma, all rounder Keshav Maharaj and pacer Kagiso Rabada will also feature in the 50-over format. Skipper Temba Bavuma will skip the first ODI citing workload management ahead of test series vs Pakistan.
Apart from them, an ODI debut can be on the cards for the young Kwena Maphaka as well. Among batters, Aiden Markram will also be part of the playing XI, who is looking to extend his good run with bat. In totality, South Africa would like to fine-tune their team combinations and on-the-field strategies, keeping in mind the upcoming Champions Trophy (CT 2025) to be played next year, which is a mega ICC event.
SA Predicted XI : Aiden Markram (C), Ryan Rickleton, Rassie van der Dussen, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen (Wk.), Andile Phehlukwayo, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Ottniel Baartman, Kagiso Rabada, Kwena Maphaka.
Pakistan :
As far as their team is concerned, Saim Ayub would like to take confidence from his second T20I performance and extend the form going into the 50-over version of the white-ball series. Apart from him, a huge onus will remain on the experienced former Captain Babar Azam along with the current Skipper, Mohammed Rizwan. While in the bowling department, spinner Abrar Ahmed will hope to continue his T20I bowling rhythm against the hosts. While the pace battery will need to get the act together.
PAK Predicted XI : Mohammad Rizwan (C/Wk.), Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Abdullah Shafique, Salman Agha, Sufiyan Muqeem, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Abrar Ahmed.
SA vs PAK Fantasy XI : Heinrich Klaasen, Mohammad Rizwan, Tristan Stubbs, Babar Azam, David Miller, Abdullah Shafique, Aiden Markram, Marco Jansen (c), Saim Ayub (vc), Kagiso Rabada, Shaheen Afridi
SA vs PAK : Probable Top Performers from SA vs PAK
Probable Best Batter: Saim Ayub
Saim Ayub has been in great form lately. He scored 98* in the second T20I against the Proteas. He also did well in the ODI series against Australia. He has scored 280 runs in 6 ODIs this year at an average of 56 including a hundred and a fifty.
Tristan Stubbs (SA)
Tristan Stubbs has been in sublime form in ODIs this year. He likes to bat positively and take the attack to the opposition. Stubbs has scored 242 runs in 6 innings this year at an average of 60.50 including a fifty and a hundred to his name.
Probable Best Bowler: Abrar Ahmed
Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed remained a mystery in the T20I opener. Hence the willy bowler has the ability to dish out his unpredictable art of spin after picking a four-wicket haul during the recently concluded series in the shortest format against the Rainbow nation.
Besides, Boland Park assists the batters on most occasions, lack of pace can make it tough for them to clear the ground with sheer ease. Therefore, Abrar can get difficult for the batters to read on his day and prove to be a match-winner if the visitors have any chance to kickstart the ODI series on a high note.
Marco Jansen (SA)
This will be the first ODI game for Marco Jansen in 2024. He has been in terrific form in tests. Jansen picked up 33 wickets in 20 games last year and scored 406 runs in 17 innings at an average of 32.33.
SA vs PAK : Match Prediction
Both teams are looking equally balanced. South Africa has better batting depth compared to Pakistan but Pakistan has a better bowling attack. South Africa should emerge victorious in this match.
Scenario 1
South Africa win the toss and opt to bat first
PP Score: 55-60
SA: 290-315
South Africa to win the match
Scenario 2
Pakistan win the toss and opt to bat first
PP Score: 45-50
PAK: 260-270
South Africa to win the match