T20 World Cup: Temba Bavuma wins toss, opts to field against Dasun Shanaka-led Sri Lanka

South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma has opted to field after winning the toss in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2021 encounter against Sri Lanka. There is some good news from the viewpoint of the former with wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock back in the lineup. De Kock was sidelined for South Africa’s previous encounter, following his refusal to take a knee, before withdrawing from the T20 World Cup 2021 fixture against West Indies. Sri Lanka will be eager to make their presence felt and record a vital win as the race for the knockouts heats up.

“The ball might keep low”

“We have played a couple of games, so the ball might keep low. Bowlers and batters have been exposed to this wicket before, so that might be an advantage for us. We have planned after that loss against SA, so hopefully we’ll be able to execute them today. We are playing with the same team,” said Dasun Shanaka as quoted by Cricbuzz.

South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma confirmed that De Kock was in a much better state.

“We are going to bowl first. Quinton comes in for Klaasen. The team is feeling much better, de Kock is in a much better state. The first 5 overs will be key for us. We are expecting the pitch to be different here in Sharjah. We are expecting it be a slow and low wicket,” stated Bavuma.

Lineups:

Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Kusal Perera(w), Pathum Nissanka, Charith Asalanka, Avishka Fernando, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka(c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Lahiru Kumara.

South Africa (Playing XI): Temba Bavuma(c), Quinton de Kock(w), Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Reeza Hendricks, David Miller, Dwaine Pretorius, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi.

Pakistan’s recent triumph against Afghanistan motivation for Sri Lanka

Pakistan recently pulled off a triumph against Afghanistan, which will certainly serve as motivation for neighbours Sri Lanka. Skipper Babar Azam sounded extremely pleased after the win.

“We started well with the ball, got a lot of wickets like we planned. Maybe gave away 10-15 runs too many at the end. With the bat, we couldn’t capitalise the powerplay as we wanted to. At the end, with Malik and Asif Ali, we knew they could do the job. He (Asif Ali) is known for this and I was confident pre-tournament itself that he would deliver when needed. We planned our strategies well with the ball, and also ensured that he kept the uneven boundary dimensions in mind while bowling. Spinners were getting some grip from the track, Afghanistan have quality bowlers too and I was trying to take it as deep as possible. Unfortunately I couldn’t finish things off but credit to Asif Ali,” said Azam as quoted by Cricbuzz.

Mohammad Nabi admitted that his team did not start well.

“We didn’t start well but the total on the board was a decent one for this pitch. We discussed that 150 would be a good score and so we dug deep. And then got some runs in the last few overs. I think three spinners are enough. Rashid bowled at the right time and we tried to take the game deep. Asif Ali played really well in the 19th over. Lot of positives from today’s game. We fought really well till the end,” stated Nabi.