The 28th match of the 12th edition of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup will be played between India and South Africa on March 27 at Hagley Oval in Christchurch. While India have won three out of their six matches in this World Cup so far, South Africa have won four out of their six matches in the tournament to date. South Africa secured one point in a match against the West Indies that was abandoned due to rain.
Match preview
Head to Head
India and South Africa have played 27 ODIs against each other, out of which India have won 15, South Africa have won 11 and one match did not produce a result.
Squads
South Africa: Sune Luus (c), Chloe Tryon (vc), Ayabonga Khaka, Lara Goodall, Laura Wolvaardt, Lizelle Lee, Marizanne Kapp, Masabata Maria Klaas, Mignon du Preez, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Shabnim Ismail, Sinalo Jafta, Tazmin Brits, Trisha Chetty, Tumi Sekhukhune.
India: Mithali Raj (C), Harmanpreet Kaur (VC), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (WK), Sneh Rana, Jhulan Goswami, Pooja Vastrakar, Meghna Singh, Renuka Singh Thakur, Taniya Bhatia (WK), Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav
Players to watch out for
Laura Wolvaardt:
She is a right handed opening batter of South Africa. With 353 runs in six matches, she is the leading run getter for the Proteas and second highest overall. She has already hit four consecutive half-centuries in this World Cup and is looking in good touch.
Marizanne Kapp:
Alongside Ayabonga Khaka, this right arm medium pace bowler has 10 wickets, which makes her the leading wicket-taker for South Africa. Apart from her bowling, she is more than a handy middle order batter.
Yastika Bhatia:
This left handed batter of India won the player of the match in her last outing against Bangladesh. She scored a brilliant 50 off 80 balls under pressure to help India post a respectable score on board.
Sneh Rana:
This Indian all-rounder was the top performer with the ball against Bangladesh as she scalped 4-30 in 10 overs, including two maidens. Apart from her bowling, she is a good middle order batter. She also has a half-century to her name in this World Cup.
Pitch
This will be the third match of the 2022 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup that will be played here. Team batting first and team batting second have won one match each. The wicker looks good for batting as the batters get value for their shots. On the other hand, the bowlers will be required to stick to their basics to exploit the conditions on offer.
Weather
The weather is expected to have intervals of clouds and sunshine. The average temperature will be around 19 degrees Celsius, with just five percent chance of precipitation and 59 percent cloud cover. The wind will blow from the southeast.
Fantasy playing XI
Richa Ghosh, Laura Wolvaardt, Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Yastika Bhatia, Marizanne Kapp, Sneh Rana, Sune Luus, Ayabonga Khaka, Shabnim Ismail, Jhulan Goswami
Match Details
Date: March 27, 2022
Time: 6.30am IST
Venue: Hagley Oval, Christchurch
Live streaming: Star Sports, Disney + Hotstar
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I am a former cricketer having represented Mumbai University at All India University level. I was a part of MCA probables for the U-19 and U-23 age group. I have been an avid cricket writer for the last five years. Currently I am pursuing my Ph.D from IIT Bombay.