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New Zealand
South Africa
New Zealand will host South Africa in the 1st T20I at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui. This will be the first international series for both teams after the T20 World Cup. Both sides reached the semi-finals of the tournament. New Zealand defeated South Africa by 9 wickets in the semi-final. Earlier in the tournament, SA had beaten NZ by 7 wickets in the group stage. NZ then went on to lose the final against India.
Both teams will rest several core players for the 5-match series. New Zealand will share the captaincy duties between Mitchell Santner and Tom Latham, while South Africa will be led by Keshav Maharaj.
NZ have also held the upper hand in recent meetings. In the last 5 head-to-head matches between these two teams, New Zealand have won 4 games while South Africa have managed 1 victory. This record will give the hosts confidence heading into the series opener.
SA are likely to produce the bigger opening stand as the more experienced pair of Tony de Zorzi and Connor Esterhuizen, as compared to NZ's.
The betting tip is...
Highest Opening Partnership - SA
61 %
39 %
New ZealandSouth AfricaMitchell Santner will lead New Zealand in the first 3 matches of the series. Tom Latham will take over the captaincy for the final 2 games. Latham will also return to the T20I side for the first time in nearly 3 years after strong performances for Canterbury in the Super Smash and the Ford Trophy.
Devon Conway will keep wickets in the first 3 matches. Dane Cleaver will take over the wicketkeeping duties for the last 2 games. Cole McConchie and Ish Sodhi are available for all 5 matches.
Jimmy Neesham and Josh Clarkson will strengthen the side as seam-bowling all-rounders. Nathan Smith will return to the squad after recovering from injury and will add depth with both bat and ball. Kyle Jamieson and Ben Sears are also likely to get opportunities during the home series. Jayden Lennox and Katene Clarke have received their maiden T20I call-ups.
Robinson, Conway and Neesham are the key players.
Predicted Lineup: Tim Robinson, Nick Kelly, Devon Conway (wk), Bevon Jacobs, James Neesham, Nathan Smith, Mitchell Santner (c), Zak Foulkes, Kyle Jamieson, Ben Sears, Ish Sodhi.
Keshav Maharaj will lead South Africa in this series. Most of the players from the T20 World Cup squad will not travel for this tour. Maharaj, George Linde and Jason Smith will be the only players from that World Cup squad included in the series.
The squad has 5 uncapped players. Connor Esterhuizen, Dian Forrester, Jordan Hermann, Eathan Bosch and Nqobani Mokoena have received their maiden T20I call-ups. Jordan Hermann will play alongside his brother Rubin Hermann in the squad. Eathan Bosch, the younger brother of Corbin Bosch, has been ruled out of the series due to a hamstring injury. Allrounder Wiaan Mulder has been named as his replacement.
Fast bowlers Baartman and Coetzee will return to the side after missing the T20 World Cup squad. Tony de Zorzi will also return to the side after recovering from injury.
De Zorzi, Esterhuizen and Hermann are the key batters.
Predicted Lineup: Tony de Zorzi, Connor Esterhuizen, Jason Smith, Rubinn Hermann (wk), Wiaan Mulder, Dian Forrester, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj (c), Gerald Coetzee, Ottneil Baartman, Lutho Sipamla.
New Zealand will start this series with several new combinations, as many regular players are rested after the T20 World Cup. The top order will rely heavily on Tim Robinson, while Nick Kelly is also likely to take up the opening role. Both players will face a strong new-ball attack from Coetzee and Baartman.
South Africa looks slightly more settled at the top. Tony de Zorzi has experience in international cricket, and Connor Esterhuizen has done well in recent times.
With a more experienced opening pair and a clearer role at the top, South Africa are likely to build a stronger start in the powerplay and put together a better opening stand in this match.
