๐ ๐ซ๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ข๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐ง ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฆ ๐๐
Pakistan
South Africa
Pakistan and South Africa will begin their three-match ODI series at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad. This series will be played under lights and will mark the start of Shaheen Shah Afridiโs ODI captaincy for Pakistan, taking over from Mohammad Rizwan. Matthew Breetzke will lead South Africa, who will look to continue their good recent form in 50-over cricket.
Pakistan will enter this contest after winning just one of their last five ODIs, which highlights their inconsistency in the format. In contrast, South Africa will come in with three wins and two losses in their last five matches, including a strong series victory against England.
In the last five ODIs between these sides, Pakistan have dominated with four wins, while South Africa have managed just one. Pakistan have shown balance in both chasing and defending situations, winning twice each way in those encounters.
Pakistanโs bowlers have more experience and variety for home conditions, giving them a stronger chance to produce the highest wicket-taker of this match.
The betting tip is...
Top Bowler's Team - Pakistan
68 %
32 %
PakistanSouth AfricaForm-wise, Salman Agha and Mohammad Rizwan will be the key batters for Pakistan. Agha will come into this series with 380 runs in his last 10 matches, while Rizwan will bring 358 runs in the same span.
Over the last year, Agha has 629 runs in 17 innings, Rizwan 625 runs in 18 innings, and Babar Azam 562 runs in 17 innings. Saim Ayub will return for the full series and is likely to open with Fakhar Zaman. The all-round options will include Salman Agha, Faheem Ashraf, and Mohammad Nawaz.
Captain Shaheen Shah Afridi will lead the bowling attack with 27 wickets in 13 innings in the last year and 9 wickets in his last 6 matches. Naseem Shah has 23 wickets in 15 innings, while Haris Rauf has added 19 wickets in 13 matches.
Zaman, Azam and Rizwan are the key batters.
Predicted Lineup: Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Salman Agha, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Abrar Ahmed
Aiden Markramโs absence will see Matthew Breetzke lead South Africa in this ODI series. Form-wise, Breetzke and Dewald Brevis will be the key batters. Breetzke will enter the series with 317 runs in his last 5 matches at an average of 63.4 and 467 runs in 6 innings over the last year.
Quinton de Kock will return to the squad after his international retirement and will open alongside Tony de Zorzi. Dewald Brevis and Lhuan-dre Pretorius will strengthen the middle order, while Corbin Bosch and George Linde will add balance as all-rounders.
Lungi Ngidi will lead the bowling attack with 16 wickets in 8 innings over the last year. Nandre Burger will follow with 8 wickets in 5 innings. Ottneil Baartman and Lizaad Williams will provide depth to the pace unit.
De Kock, Brevis and Breetzke are the key batters.
Predicted Lineup: Quinton de Kock, Tony de Zorzi, Matthew Breetzke, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Dewald Brevis, Corbin Bosch, George Linde, Lungi Ngidi, Nandre Burger, Ottneil Baartman, Lizaad Williams
Pakistan will have the advantage with their bowling attack, better suited to the conditions in Faisalabad. Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf will lead a strong pace unit, while Abrar Ahmed and Faheem Ashraf will add variety through spin and control.
These bowlers will benefit from the slower Asian surface, which often assists both seam movement early and spin later.
South Africa will rely on Lungi Ngidi and Nandre Burger, but they may find it difficult to extract the same support from the pitch. The absence of Keshav Maharaj will also reduce their spin depth, and Kagiso Rabadaโs absence will hurt their pace attack.
Overall, Pakistanโs experienced and balanced bowling lineup will give them the upper hand in restricting South Africaโs scoring opportunities across both innings.
