India A vs South Africa, T20 Warm-up Highlights: Mayank Agarwal, Manan Vohra Fifties Give Hosts Crushing Win
South Africa managed to score 189/3 thanks to a fabulous 68 from JP Duminy. However, Mayank Agarwal and Manan Vohra played brilliantly to secure a magnificent win for India A. Catch all the highlights here.
14:30 hrs IST: South Africa have not gotten off to a great start on their tour and they will have to pull their socks up ahead of the T20I in Dharamsala. Catch all the highlights here.
14:15 hrs IST: India A have absolutely crushed South Africa in Palam. Manan Vohra's 56 and his 119-run opening stand with Mayank Agarwal gave the hosts the platform for the chase. Sanju Samson smashed 31 and along with Agarwal helped India A chase down the 190 with two balls to spare. It has been a fabulous performance and South Africa will not be thrilled with their start.
14:03 hrs IST: South Africa are still in the contest. Marchant de Lange gets rid of Mayank Agarwal for a wonderful 87. India A are 177 in 18 overs, needing 13 runs in 12 balls.
13:52 hrs IST: Mayank Agarwal is carrying on the great work and he is nearing a century. India A are 155/1 in 16 overs and they need 35 runs off 24 balls.
13:37 hrs IST: WICKET! JP Duminy breaks the 119 runs stand by dismissing Vohra for 56. However, India A are in a great position at 123/3 in the 14th over, needing 67 more for a win in six overs.
13:16 hrs IST: India A have blazed away to a magnificent start. Manan Vohra has carted the South African bowlers all around the Palam field and Mayank Agarwal has given him great company. Vohra has blazed away to a magnificent fifty and India A are 93/0 in just the 10th over.
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12:20 hrs IST: South Africa finish with a flourish. JP Duminy brings up his fifty off 27 balls and his unbeaten 68 has helped South Africa end on 189/3 at the end of 20 overs. Duminy will have knowledge of the Palam ground as he practised plenty of times during warm-ups for the Delhi Daredevils.
12:11 hrs IST: Duminy has seized the initiative and he has bulldozed his way to 40 off 23 balls. South Africa 154/3 in the 18th over, are finishing strongly here.
12:03 hrs IST: Over in Bangalore, India A have sealed an emphatic innings and 32-run victory over Bangladesh A. Catch all the highlights here.
12:00 hrs IST: With du Plessis retired, the South African batting seems to have lost momentum. AB de Villiers falls for a blitzy 37 while David Miller is bowled by Hardik Pandya for 10. South Africa are 124/3 in the 16th over.
11:49 hrs IST: Just in: The BCCI have announced the date for the Special General Meeting in order to elect a new president. The date is on October 4 in Mumbai.
11:38 hrs IST: AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis are plundering the India A attack. However, du Plessis has retired for 42 in order to rest his knee a rest and give other players a go. South Africa are 87/1 in nine overs.
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11:26 hrs IST: BANG! BANG! This is why AB de Villiers is so special. In the space of just six balls, he has raced from 7 to 27. Three fours and two sixes have been hit so far by him. India A must be feeling very worried. South Africa 52/1 in the sixth over.
11:19 hrs IST: Faf du Plessis gets going with three boundaries while de Villiers has been subdued so far. Is he going to go berserk towards the end? South Africa 29/1 in the fourth over
11:06 hrs IST: WICKET! India A strike early and Quinton de Kock goes. Mandeep Singh, the skipper, effects the run-out and De Kock departs for 2. South Africa 3/1.
11:00 hrs IST: All set for action to begin. AB de Villiers, one of the best batsman in the world, has come out to open the batting with Quinton de Kock. De Villiers, who has tremendous experience playing in the IPL for Royal Challengers Bangalore, will be expected to dazzle at Palam.
10:45 hrs IST: The team composition reveals an interesting picture. India A have three spinners in Pawan Negi, Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav. South Africa have gone with two legspinners in Eddie Leie and Imran Tahir. Marchant de Lange is in the playing XI. No Dale Steyn, No Morne Morkel.
10:40 hrs IST: South Africa have won the toss and chosen to bat in the warm-up game against India A at Palam.
10:13 hrs IST: First, some team news. Hashim Amla will not be present for this match due to personal reasons. He will fly out from South Africa and join the team in New Delhi before they leave for Dharamsala for the first T20I in October 2. Albie Morkel will miss this match as he has not yet gotten his visa.
10:10 hrs IST: All the talk, all the pre-match hype is done. It is time for serious action. South Africa's marathon 72-day tour begins today with a warm-up T20 against a second-string India A side at the Palam Air Force Base ground in New Delhi. One must remember that this is a different India A outfit. In Bangalore, another India A team is battling it out with Bangladesh A.
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South Africa come to India with plenty at stake. Their record against India in T20Is is not a good one, having lost six and won just two out of eight in a eight-year period. This will be the first time that South Africa will play a T20I in India and they will be aiming to get off to a good start.
South Africa's T20 captain Faf du Plessis has admitted that playing the Indian Premier League will help his teammates when they take on India in a series of T20 internationals, ODIs and Test matches starting at Dharamsala on October 2. Several South Africans play the IPL and as Chennai Super Kings teammates, Du Plessis has shared the same dressing room as India's skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
South Africa coach Russell Domingo has said, "Indians are very good players of spin, we know that. Our fast bowlers have always been successful whenever South Africa has toured India. Although spin is going to be a very big factor in this series, it's important that our seamers start going for us. We have got very good spinners in the experienced Imran Tahir and two young spinners in Dane Piedt and Simon Harmer. It would be a great experience for them to play against these (Indian) players under these conditions in high pressure environment. But like I said, the seamers have done the business for us around the world and I expect them to play a big part under these conditions as well."
India A, on the other hand, will be aiming to dent the confidence of the Proteas with a solid display. The side comprises of young IPL performers over the past couple of years. The three spinners Yuzvendra Chahal, Pawan Negi and Kuldeep Yadav would fancy their chances ahead of the World T20, as none of the spinners save Ravichandran Ashwin is assured of his place in the T20 format.
Squads:
South Africa: Faf du Plessis (capt), Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock, Marchant de Lange, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, Eddie Leie, Kyle Abbott, David Miller, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada, Albie Morkel, Khaya Zondo.
India A: Mandeep Singh (captain), Mayank Agarwal, Manan Vohra, Manish Pandey, Surya Kumar Yadav, Sanju Samson, Hardik Pandya, Rishi Dhawan, Anureet Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Pawan Negi, Kuldeep Yadav.