India will take on South Africa in match 37 of the Men’s World Cup ODI 2023 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday, 5th November. Both teams have had brilliant campaigns in the tournament thus far. The Men in Blue are the only unbeaten team in the ongoing Men’s World Cup ODI, with seven successive wins and also booked their spot in the semi-final following a comprehensive victory against Sri Lanka. Proteas won successive matches in the last four matches. They’ve registered six wins and a loss in seven matches of their campaign thus far. India are on top of the points table with 14 points whereas South Africa are in the second spot with 12 points.
In the Men’s World Cup ODI, India and South Africa have met each other five times since 1992, with Proteas leading 3-2. The last encounter between the two sides in the tournament was in 2019 when India defeated South Africa by six wickets. The upcoming match is expected to be exciting as Men in Blue and Proteas will look to extend their unbeaten run in the tournament.
Players To Watch Out For
1. S Gill (IND): Shubman Gill was one of the instrumental players in India’s comprehensive win against Sri Lanka. He scored a brilliant knock of 92 off 92 to help the team post a solid total of 357/8. This was his best performance in the tournament thus far. In the ongoing Men’s World Cup ODI, the 24-year-old has aggregated 196 runs, including two half-centuries, at an average of 39.20 and a decent strike rate of 97.02 in five matches. S Gill is a talented batsman who resorts to an attacking style of batting. He can score quick runs in the powerplay and anchor the innings at the top. Gill is one of the key players for India in the tournament and his form is crucial throughout the campaign. S Gill will look to come up with goods again in the upcoming match against South Africa.
2. Q de Kock (SA): Q de Kock is in sensational form in the ongoing edition of the Men’s World Cup ODI. In the previous match against New Zealand, the 30-year-old played a scintillating knock of 114 off 116 balls at a strike rate of 98.28. His innings consisted of 10 fours and 3 sixes. de Kock is currently the leading run-scorer of the tournament with 545 runs, including four centuries, at an average of 77.85 in seven matches. He is the first South African batsman to score 500 runs and hit four centuries in a single edition of the Men’s World Cup ODI. Q de Kock’s phenomenal form is a big positive for South Africa as they are looking to book their berth in the semifinal. de Kock will look to carry on his good form and pose a threat to India’s bowling attack.
3. R Sharma (IND): The Indian captain didn’t have a good outing against Sri Lanka as he scored just 4 runs. It is his lowest score in the last six innings of the Men’s World Cup 2023. However, R Sharma knows how to rise from the ashes. Once he finds his groove, he will get going. R Sharma is currently the second-leading run-scorer of the tournament, including a century and two fifties, at an average of 57.42 in seven matches so far. The 36-year-old is the best-performing captain in the tournament so far. In this Men’s World Cup ODI, R Sharma adapted to an aggressive batting approach, allowing him to score quick runs in the powerplay and accelerate the innings in the middle overs. The Indian skipper will look to come up with goods in the upcoming match against South Africa.
4. M Jansen (SA): M Jansen has been one of the stand-out players for South Africa in the ongoing edition of the Men’s World Cup ODI. In the last match against New Zealand, Jansen played a crucial role in South Africa’s convincing, by taking 3 wickets while conceding just 31 runs at an economy rate of 3.9 in his 8 overs spell. In this tournament, Jansen has scalped 16 wickets at an average of 20.06 and an economy rate of 5.83 in seven matches. With the bat, he has scored 143 runs, including a fifty, at an average of 47.66 in six innings. M Jansen is an asset to the team due to his all-round ability. He can pile runs in the middle and take crucial wickets with the ball. Jansen can turn the game on its head with the bat or ball. He will look to make an impact in the upcoming match against India.
5. M Shami (IND): M Shami has been phenomenal with the ball in the ongoing Men’s World Cup 2023. He has played just three games and proved again why he is an asset to the team. In his first match against New Zealand, he scalped five wickets, followed by a four-wicket haul against England. In the last match against Sri Lanka, he dismantled the opposition’s batting line-up and picked another five-wicket haul. With this, M Shami became the highest wicket-taker for India with 45 wickets in the history of Men’s World Cup ODI. In this edition of the tournament, Shami scalped 14 wickets at an average of 6.71 and an economy rate of 4.27 in three matches. Since M Shami is in good form, he is expected to pose a real threat to South Africa’s batting line-up.
Predicted Playing XI
IND: S Gill, R Sharma (C), V Kohli, S Iyer, SK Yadav, KL Rahul (WK), R Jadeja, K Yadav, M Shami, J Bumrah, M Siraj
SA: T Bavuma, Q de Kock, V dur Dussen, A Markram, H Klaseen, D Miller, M Jansen, G Coetzee, K Maharaj, K Rabada, L Ngidi
Fantasy Playing XI Picks
Wicketkeeper: Q de Kock (VC)
Batsmen: S Gill, R Sharma, Aiden Markram, V Kohli
All-rounders: M Jansen, R Jadeja
Bowlers: K Rabada, M Shami, K Maharaj, J Bumrah,
Prediction
India and South Africa have had great campaigns thus far and picking the winner of the upcoming fixture is difficult. However, India is expected to continue their winning streak as they will leave no stone unturned to remain undefeated in the league stage. The Eden Gardens stadium is likely to favour the Men in Blue as they have a strong home advantage. Also, India’s pace bowling attack is stronger than South Africa’s. Therefore, India have an edge over South Africa in the upcoming match of the tournament.
