India and South Africa lock in for a 5-match T20I series from December 9
The Indians won the ODI series 2-1
Check the Barabati stadium's pitch report and Cuttack's weather report
It's time for some T20 action between India and South Africa as both teams engage in the final leg of the Proteas tour. The 5-match series starts from Tuesday, December 9 at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack, Odisha.
The South Africans began the tour with a 2-0 whitewash of India in the red-ball series. It was their first Test series victory on Indian soil since the 1999/2000 series.
Although South Africa's glory was marred by the "grovel" comments made by their head coach Shukri Conrad, it was an unacceptable result for the Indians, who were led by Shubman Gill in the 1st and Rishabh Pant in the 2nd Test match.
Things went quickly in the following 3-match ODI series, which was a run-scoring fest. A total of 1,401 runs were scored in the first two one-days alone - 681 in Ranchi and 720 runs in Raipur.
South Africa were extremely close to winning the opening ODI but Indian held their nerves to secure a 17-run victory. In the 2nd one-day, Aiden Markram and Matthew Breetzke cancelled the centuries from Virat Kohli and Ruturaj Gaikwad to win by 4 wickets.
In the series concluder on December 6, Yashasvi Jaiswal was on target as he smashed his maiden ODI century as India sealed the series with a 9-wicket win in Visakhapatnam.
Now it's down to the 5-match T20I series, which begins on 9th of this month. The following matches will take place on 11, 14, 17 and 19 December.
Suryakumar Yadav and co will treat this series as a preparatory one for the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 on home soil. India will turn up as the defending champions in the 20-team spectacle from February to March.
India Vs South Africa 1st T20I: Cuttack Weather Forecast
It will be a clear evening at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack, but it is going to be very cold as the temperature will drop down to 12 degree Celsius in the evening.
Bowlers might face some problems, possibly across both innings as Dew point will be at 10 degrees. The surface at the Barabati Stadium is known for its assistance to the bowlers, especially spinners. Former India greats like Anil Kumble, Narendra Hirwani and Maninder Singh have enjoyed great success here.
India Vs South Africa 1st T20I: Barabati Cricket Stadium Pitch Report
This will only be the 4th international T20 match at the Barabati stadium and the first since 2022. Two of the 3 matches played at the venue have been between India and South Africa.
Surprisingly, the Proteas were victorious on both occasions - 6 and 4-wicket wins in 2015 and 2022 respectively.
The surface at the Barabati Stadium is known for its assistance to the bowlers, especially spinners. Former India greats like Anil Kumble, Narendra Hirwani and Maninder Singh have enjoyed great success here.
The variable bounce is very prevalent in this track and it will be a good toss to win and bowl first.
India Vs South Africa 1st T20I: IND Squad
Suryakumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC)*, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar
