India and South Africa will clash in the third T20I match of the five-match series on Sunday, December 14, at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala. India will aim to bounce back from their recent defeat, while South Africa will aim to carry their winning momentum.

 

India

 

India has been playing phenomenal cricket in the shorter format lately, but they fell short in the second T20I against South Africa, suffering a defeat by 51 runs. While India opted to bowl first, they seemed clueless from the beginning when the South African batters started assaulting over the corners of the venue. While chasing a total of 214 runs, India's batting took a major collapse; they were 67 for 4 at one moment, but Tilak Varma's half-century somehow showed resilience. With the series levelled at 1-1, the Indian team will look to opt for a different strategy for their batting in the upcoming games. 

 

South Africa

 

South Africa bounced back well in New Chandigarh to level the series after losing the opening game. Their batting struggles in Cuttack took a turnaround in Chandigarh, as their batting unit got in sync to post a 200+ total. Quinton de Kock’s commanding 90 set the tone, and contributions throughout the lineup helped them rack up a challenging 213 on a challenging wicket. Their bowlers did the rest of the job, the duo of Ottneil Baartman, Lutho Sipamla and Lungi Ngidi shared 8 wickets each.  

 

IND vs SA T20I Match Details

 

IND vs SA T20I Match Details
Match	India vs South Africa 3rd T20I Match
Date and Time	Sunday, December 14; 7:00 p.m. IST
Venue	Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala
Broadcasting and live streaming	TV - Star Sports Network, Live Stream - JioHotstar

 

IND vs SA 3rd T20I Pitch Report

 

The surface at Dharamsala is likely to offer a bowling-friendly surface for this match. It will be fast and spicy, offering good bounce and carry throughout the game. Pacers often enjoy great help with the new ball, especially in the power play, where swing and seam can trouble batters. But as the match progresses, the dew is likely to come in and help the batters in the second innings as well. 

 

IND vs SA 3rd T20I Weather Report

 

The weather in Dharamsala on Sunday is likely to be cold and chilly, with no chances of rain predicted for the game. The venue is located in the surroundings of the mountains, offering chilly winds during the match. The temperature, though, is unlikely to drop much, hovering around 10°C with a low humidity of around 35%. The wind speed is likely to be around 12km/h, which might assist fast bowlers early on in the match.

 

IND vs SA Head-to-Head Records

 

IND vs SA head-to-head (in T20Is)
Match Played	33
Won by India	19
Won by South Africa	13
Tied	0
No Result	1

 

IND vs SA 3rd T20I Probable XI

 

• India: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah

 

• South Africa: Aiden Markram (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Lutho Sipamla, Ottneil Baartman, Lungi Ngidi

 

Players To Watch Out For In IND vs SA 3rd T20I Match

 

• Tilak Varma | IND: Tilak Varma remains one of the key players in the middle-order for the team in this format, capable of playing a good knock from his bat anytime. He did exceptionally well in the second match, scoring a brilliant half-century, but couldn't take his team across the winning line. Under pressure, this left-arm batter takes time but plays up to his best capability. He will be a player to watch out for in this game.

 

• Quinton de Kock | SA: Quinton de Kock proved yet again why he is still one of the most stylish and valuable players in this T20I setup for the team. He fell short of his T20I hundred in the second game, but he got 90 runs before getting out on a silly delivery. So far in his T20I career, he has scored 2705 runs in 98 matches. He was one of the standout performers from the team in the last game. He will be the player to watch out for in this game as well.

 

IND vs SA 3rd T20I Toss Prediction

 

Historical Toss-Winning Stats at the Venue

 

• In the 3 T20 matches played here, the toss-winning teams have opted to bowl on all three occasions.

 

Advantages of Batting First on This Pitch

 

• In the 9 T20I matches played at this venue, it has been recorded that he team batting first has registered victory in 4 games, while teams batting second have won an equal number of matches. By looking at the recent trends, the batting first option seems favourable for the teams here. 

 

IND vs SA T20I Today's Match Scenario

 

Scenario 1

 

• Toss Winner: India (opts to bat first)


• Power-Play Score: 45-50


• IND Total: 175-180


• Match Winner: India

 

Scenario 2

 

• Toss Winner: South Africa (opts to bat first)


• Power-Play Score: 42-48


• SA Total: 175-190


• Match Winner: South Africa

 

Who will win today's IND vs SA 3rd T20I match?

 

India has shown some dominating performances in this format in the last few months, and they started the series with a commanding victory, but they fumbled in the third game. However, India remains favourable to win this game. India might seem like struggling at the top, but they are the favourite to win this game. South Africa has depth in both batting and bowling, if they clicked at the right moment they can take away this game as well.