Unchanged India bat first at Wanderers in the 4th T20I

Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and decided to bat first at the Wanderers in Johannesburg. Both teams went unchanged into the fourth and last T20I. 

It has been a fascinating three T20Is, to say the least, even though the hype around this entire series has been hijacked by the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction and the upcoming Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) in Australia.

However, the youngsters from India and South Africa have taken the opportunity with both hands and shown they are ready to make their mark in the world of T20 cricket. Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma and Varun Chakaravarthy have been stupendous for India. Meanwhile, Tristan Stubbs, Gerald Coetzee, and Marco Jansen have flexed their muscles massively for the Proteas. 

With India leading 2-1, the Proteas have a great opportunity to draw the series 2-2 and not let India run with the four-match T20I series. The Indian batters have been occasionally found wanting against the natural pace and bounce on the South African surfaces. The pitch at Wanderers in Johannesburg might do that despite looking like a great surface to bat on. 

Playing XIs

India: Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakaravarthy 

South Africa: Ryan Rickelton, Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram(c), Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen(w), David Miller, Marco Jansen, Gerald Coetzee, Andile Simelane, Keshav Maharaj, Lutho Sipamla 

Skippers speak

Suryakumar Yadav:  We are going to bat first. We have been doing that well in the last 2-3 games and we want to stick to that. The plan has been clear from the first game. We have been wanting to put runs on the board and defend. It is a quick turnaround; there is a one-day gap between the games, but the boys are professionals and are taking care of themselves. Same team. 

Aiden Markram:  We weren't sure (whether to bat or bowl). Probably leaning towards batting. We haven't put a hundred per cent into all three departments. We are edging towards it. We can't win the series but we pulled one back after being 1-0 down, so we can take confidence from that and try to level the series. We are going with the same team. 

Pitch Report by Natalie Germanos and Shaun Pollock 

It has been a slightly cooler day in Johannesburg. The straight boundary is slightly long, 86 meters, but the square boundaries are shorter—62 and 66 meters. It looks really good. There's a decent covering of grass; however, there are no cracks. It is going to carry through nicely, and the ball will come on. It is a kind of pitch where you go after the bowlers, then you can put some jitters. 

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