The first Test took 8 sessions to wind up and the second took a session and half more. Blame Pakistan’s abysmal batting performance that the contests have been short and one-sided, and going by the average scores at The Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, it will be even more difficult for them to rise from the downward spiral.
After scoring a pair in the series opener, Faf du Plessis registered a hundred that knocked out Pakistan right away in the second Test. However, there’s a glimmer of hope for Pakistan, that du Plessis has been handed a one-Test ban for not maintaining the over-rate. Dean Elgar will call the shots.
My XI: Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Babar Azam, Shan Masood, Hashim Amla (c), Dean Elgar, Temba Bavuma, Vernon Philander (vc), Shaheen Afridi, Dale Steyn, Kagiso Rabada, Dane Olivier
Note: Make your fantasy cricket team by knowing the statistics.
Batters
In a series that has been witnessing Pakistani batters struggle to find their feet, it comes as a surprise that it is theirbatters who are at the top of the runs chart. Masood (189) and Babar (151) have scored more runs than Temba Bavuma (141), the highest run-scorer for South Africa. This means that Pakistani batters have been failing to bat as a cohesive unit, that they need to build partnerships if they are to end the series with a win.
With 3 hundreds and 6 fifties at The Wanderers Stadium, our fourth choice will be the mighty Hash. He needs 117 runs to dethrone Jacques Kallis as the highest run-scorer at the venue.
Elgar has not been at his best, but he performed when his side needed him the most. He helped his side chase targets in both Tests.
All-rounders
Philander is the only all-rounder worth picking for our fantasy team. He has taken as many as 35 wickets at 15.08 at the venue, including best figures of 9 for 51 in a match.
Bowlers
Now that we have taken Philander already, let’s add the remaining three pacers to the mix: Steyn, Rabada, and Olivier. It’s imperative that we take all South African pacers, so we can accumulate as many bonus points on this bowler-friendly pitch. While Olivier has taken most wickets (16) in the series, Rabada and Steyn have scalped 12 and 10 wickets respectively.
Shaheed Afridi is the only Pakistani bowler we’ll opt for. He has taken 9 wickets at 26.6 in the series, the most for his team.
Wicketkeeper
It is unfair to choose Sarfraz over Quinton de Kock who has scored double the runs, but given we have already opted for seven South African players, we had to make up for a Pakistan player to follow the fantasy rules.
Probable XI for South Africa: Dean Elgar (c), Aiden Markram/Pieter Malan, Hashim Amla, Theunis de Bruyn, Temba Bavuma, Zubayr Hamza, Quinton de Kock (wk), Vernon Philander, Kagiso Rabada, Dale Steyn, Duanne Olivier/Keshav Maharaj
Probable XI for Pakistan: Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sarfraz Ahmed (c & wk), Faheem Ashraf, Yasir Shah/Shadab Khan, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Abbas, Shaheen Shah Afridi/Hasan Ali
Pitch report
There’s always a tinge of grass to assist seam bowlers at the Wanderers Stadium. Batters have to be careful with their shot-selection.
The average first-innings score here is 317 and it shots down to 285, 252, and 207 in the second, third, and fourth innings respectively. Batting first is sensible.
Squads:
South Africa: Faf du Plessis(c), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Theunis de Bruyn, Quinton de Kock, Dean Elgar, Zubayr Hamza, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Duanne Olivier, Kagiso Rabada, Dale Steyn, Dane Paterson, Vernon Philander
Pakistan: Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Azhar Ali, Shan Masood, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sarfraz Ahmed(c), Mohammad Rizwan, Yasir Shah, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Abbas, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Amir, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi
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