Pakistan will lock horns against South Africa in the 26th match of the ongoing World Cup 2023 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai on Friday. South Africa has won four out of the five matches and they have simply been brilliant with the bat as their batters have scored a truckload of runs.
Pakistan, on the other hand, has lacked with the ball and it has led to their downfall in the ongoing showpiece. The Babar Azam-led was flabbergasted by Afghanistan in their last game by eight wickets. We look at the current form, head-to-head, players to look out for, and squads of both teams in our match preview.
Current form for South Africa: W W L W W
After suffering a shocking loss against the Netherlands, South Africa has been able to bounce back strongly in the last two matches. The Proteas have ticked the right boxes as a batting unit as Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, and David Miller have done a fine job.
Current form for Pakistan: L L L W W
Pakistan kicked off their campaign with two strong wins but they have lost their last three games. The Men in Green will have to come up with a collective bowling display against the Proteas, who are in red-hot form with the bat.
Head to Head: Matches: 82, Won by South Africa: 51, Won by Pakistan: 30, NR: 1.
South Africa clearly holds the advantage in the H2H battle against Pakistan.
Players to look out for: Quinton de Kock, Heinrich Klaasen, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Temba Bavuma, Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada, and Keshav Maharaj will be important players for the Proteas.
Babar Azam, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Haris Rauf will be the crucial players for Pakistan.
Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Wasim.
South Africa squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Lizaad Williams.
