Going into the 4th match of this Tri-Series, South Africa and Zimbabwe will face off against each other after losing to New Zealand. As South Africa came off a 21-run defeat in their previous outing, this match will be vital for them in order to have a chance at the finals. If they come out victorious against the Chevrons in this matchup, they could end up at the top of this Tri-Series table and have an edge over the other two sides.
Although stars like Wiaan Mulder, Kagiso Rabada, and Aiden Markram haven’t played in these matches, South Africa’s depth has showcased their full potential already, plus they hope to continue doing it for even more time. Captain Rassie Van der Dussen will lead this side once again, while hoping to get into good batting form after already being one of the best motivators.
In hopes of winning, they will play a side that they have already had great recent success against. Meanwhile, Zimbabwe has struggled to find any good touch during this Tri-Series and will be elimnated if they lose this upcoming match. A group that currently stands at 0-2, they have already lost to South Africa in the opener, while looking less favorable in this upcoming matchup.
Although the likes of Blessing Muzarabani plus Sikandar Raza, have shown up, there hasn’t been a game that has been a full effort yet. With that being said, it will be interesting to see if the Chevrons make any vital changes and change their playstyle in hopes of creating an upset.
South Africa: Middle-Order Has Been A Massive Support System
When looking at this South Africa side, one very key thing is how impactful their batsmen have been down the order. With the hope that players coming up top, like Reeza Hendricks and Luan-Dre Pretorius, find their form again, these middle-order pieces will continue to play a great role. Starting with Dewald Brevis, he has shown an immensely great ability to strike at a rapid pace and launch massive sixes all over the ground. Already having hit eight maximums during this Tri-Series, this is someone who has also averaged 38 runs over his last two matches at a strike rate past 190+. Alongside Brevis, another key piece to watch out for is George Linde, who remains to be one of the most underrated all-rounders on this squad.
Although he couldn’t show much in his first match against Zimbabwe, Linde was able to hit 30 runs against a more formidable New Zealand attack and showed great potential in hitting both controlled and big shots. Now that he’s really made a big name over the last couple matches, this is someone who South Africa can count on to bat despite all their other pieces going down.
Rubin Hermann has also become a major threat down the order, as he produced a crucial 45-run knock in his first innings of this series. With that being said, others, such as Corbin Bosch, who is starting to become a world-renowned name, and Senuran Muthuswamy, provide even more depth to this middle-order group.
South Africa: Bowling Is A Massive Positive
While many were skeptical about the South African bowling attack before the series, they have demonstrated significantly more capability than anticipated. The key leader of this group has been Lungi Ngidi, as he just became the 3rd-highest wicket taker in T20Is during their previous match. Now at 65 career wickets in the short format, it will be quite interesting to see who they play between Nandre Burger and Kwena Mphaka.
Although Burger has bowled at a solid economy in South Africa’s last match against Zimbabwe, their other 19-year-old pacer in Mphaka, has shown great wicket-taking ability after picking up two last match. Also, Gerald Coetzee will get about 3-4 overs in this match, depending on the economy he bowls at and if he plays at all, with Andile Simelane potentially there to replace him for the rest as well.
Simelane did go for a ton of runs in his first match of this Tri-Series and an economy of nearly 14, but he’s still a young piece that’s going through several ups and downs while gaining additional key experience. Corbin Bosch will round out this pace attack as he proved that he can finish his four overs and limit teams to 8-9 runs during each batting-friendly one like powerplays. Although he hasn’t been able to take a wicket in this Tri-Series, this all-rounder will be hungry for one during this upcoming match.
For spinning options, Senuran Muthuswamy will be a real threat as their lefty spinner after going 1/19 in four overs during their last match. If these bowlers can put great overs together, it’s going to be scary for any team to face.
Zimbabwe: All-Rounder Could Shed Some Light Into This Match
Looking at this Zimbabwe unit, their all-rounders will play a major factor if they want to create any type of upset. Their leader in Sikandar Raza, is going to look for another top-class performance after hitting a 50+ not-out score in his first match against South Africa. He has had some of the best knocks during crunch time and still remains this group’s main batting threat despite not being an opener.
Although Sikandar Raza had a less successful innings during his previous outing against New Zealand, Raza has been both a strong maximum hitter and someone who’s provided great stroke play. On the other side, Ryan Burl will create a nice lefty-righty combination, plus provide runs at a quick pace as well.
Seeing that Ryan Burl has a 24.54 average in T20Is, he has also provided 41 runs for his side during the first couple of innings of this series. In the top order, Wessley Madhevere showed that he could be back in form after scoring 36 runs in his previous outing and playing some of his more iconic shots. Although he is a part-time bowler, this guy has shown that when his batting form is on, it’s nearly impossible to ever take his wicket. As Wellington Masakadza can provide some runs for this team in the back end after averaging about 10, the hope is for him to find form and create some vital partnerships with Tony Munyonga towards the back end of their innings.
Zimbabwe: The Pace Bowlers Can Create An Upset
This group’s three fast bowlers have really kept Zimbabwe in most of these matches during the Tri-Series and remain a major building block of this whole squad. Blessing Muzarabani remains the biggest name on this side as he picked up a massive wicket against New Zealand last match and now has 79 wickets in 71 matches. Known for his action and style of bowling, this is a piece that is almost impossible to hit sixes or fours against.
The other vital pacer is Trevor Gwandu, whose just recently become a massive part of this Zimbabwe side. Only playing 16 T20Is so far, he has already picked up 16 wickets and had two in their last matchup against South Africa. To close it out, Richard Ngarava remains the top wicket-taker in this group’s history during T20Is after getting 83 wickets in just over 70 matches.
Previous Matches
Matches Played: 6
Zimbabwe Won: 0
South Africa: 6
Last 5: South Africa won the last 5 matches
Match Prediction
Zimbabwe Batting 1st: 145-155 for 7 wickets lost
South Africa Batting 1st: 175-185 for 3 wickets lost
Zimbabwe Batting 2nd: Win by 1 wicket or lose by 35 runs
South Africa Batting 2nd: Win by 7 wickets or lose by 1 run
Final Prediction: South Africa will win by 30 runs if batting 1st or 6-7 wickets if batting 2nd
Key Players
South Africa
Lungi Ngidi: Hits 140+ km/hr on a consistent basis and great wicket-taker
Dewald Brevis: Known for smashing sixes and a high strike rate
Corbin Bosch: Can bowl full overs and provide runs as a middle-order batsman
Rassie Van der Dussen: Captain and known for stroke play
Zimbabwe
Blessing Muzarabani: Has a top-class bowling action and always bowls economically low
Richard Ngarava: Great wicket-taker in every situation
Sikandar Raza: Captain with amazing knocks during some of the biggest matches
Ryan Burl: Left-handed all-rounder who can provide in multiple ways
Also Read: ZIM vs SA : Wiaan Mulder Reflects On His Unbeaten 367 After Conversation With Brian Lara