ENG vs SA, Preview | England eyes three-year redemption after T20I series loss against Proteas

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England vs South Africa first T20I preview

The first T20I between England and South Africa is set to take place on September 10 at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff. The two teams will be featuring in their first T20I series since 2022, where the hosts will be eyeing redemption and the Proteas will be looking to improve their form in T20Is.

The time has come for the colonial rivalry to continue, and this time, England and South Africa will be battling it out in the T20I series starting from Wednesday. The last time the two teams faced each other in the shortest format was in 2022, in which the Three Lions had lost the series by a 2-1 margin after taking an early lead in the series. This will be another opportunity at redemption for the two-time T20 world champions, especially after their disappointing outing in the ODI series against the Proteas.

While England will be looking for their revenge moment in the upcoming series, the Rainbow Nation will be looking to improve their form in the shortest format. The African nation has not had a good run in T20Is since their heartbreaking loss in the 2024 T20 World Cup final against India, having lost five of their last six series so far. With the next edition of the T20 World Cup just months away, the Aiden Markram-led side would want to find some consistency in the results, starting with the upcoming series against an in-form England side.

Form Guide

England’s recent form in T20Is has improved after their clean sweep win against the West Indies last season, with three wins out of their last five games.

South Africa, on the other hand, has been struggling in the shortest format ever since their heartbreaking loss against New Zealand in the final of the T20I Tri-series. Their last T20I series saw them lose to the Aussies by a 2-1 margin, and they have lost four of their last five games so far.

England: W W W L L

South Africa: L W L L L

ENG vs SA Head-to-Head in T20s

The two teams have had some great battles in the 26 matches they have featured in, with the Proteas just about holding a one-game lead over the Three Lions in T20Is

England 12 - 13 England

Pitch and Weather

The surface in Sophia Gardens in Cardiff might give some early seam movement to the pacers in the initial phase of the game, but the conditions tend to get easier when the batters spend more time at the crease. Chasing has been an ideal choice for the team on this surface, as seven of the 10 T20I games that have been played at the venue have been won by the team fielding first.

The weather reports in Cardiff do not look promising as heavy rains are expected from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM at the venue, with the probable temperature being between 15-16 degrees Celsius.

Team News

Phil Salt, Jamie Smith, Jos Buttler, and Harry Brook are expected to be the four specialist batters for England going into the first T20I. While all-rounders Jamie Overton and Sam Curran might also be included in the lineups to add some depth to the playing eleven, the bowling department could also see a surprising change with the inclusion of Luke Wood, who might be included in the lineup to give premier pacer Jofra Archer some rest after the ODIs.

South Africa, on the other hand, is expected to go with six specialist batters and two pace bowling all-rounders in Corbin Bosch and Marco Jansen. The three probable specialist bowlers will be Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, and Lungi Ngidi.

England Probable XI: Phil Salt, Jamie Smith, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (c), Jacob Bethell, Will Jacks, Sam Curran, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Saqib Mahmood, Luke Wood.

South Africa Probable XI: Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Corbin Bosch, Marco Jansen, Keshava Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, Lungi Ngidi.

Broadcasting Platforms

The first T20I between England and South Africa will be digitally streamed on the Fancode and Sonyliv app/website. The fans can also catch the action on Television on the Sony Sports network at 11:00 PM.