The beleaguered Australians will have a shot a redemption when they host South Africa in a one-off T20 at the Carrara Stadium in Queensland.
South Africa come into the fixture on a high after their 2-1 in the ODI segment of the tour. The Australians, however, are probably best equipped to deal with the South Africans in the shortest format of the game.
Australia vs South Africa | Saturday 17 November | Carrara Stadium, Queensland | 10:20
To Win Match
Australia 91/100
Tie 35/1
South Africa 91/100
Australia
Australia certainly seem better equipped to deal with the slightly less demanding nature of T20 cricket at the moment. Their top order prowess in the longer formats of the game has been keenly affected by the one-year bans issued to Steve Smith and David Warner. This disadvantage is negated, however, by the unpredictable nature of the 20-over game.
The hosts certainly have the sort of x-factor players that can hurt the Proteas. Aaron Finch and D’arcy Short will open the batting. Short can be particularly devastating if he’s on song as we saw in last season’s Big Bash. The 28-year-old also registered a 148-ball 257 in a Lisa A match for Western Australia toward the end of September. Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis add even more venom to a stacked Australian top and middle order.
Bowling-wise, things don’t look as rosy for the Australians. Andrew Tye was decimated by the South Africans in the warm-up match, conceding 55 runs in his four overs. Jason Behrendorff was bowled well enough in the same fixture, grabbing two wickets. Adam Zampa and Ashton Agar will have to keep things tidy, especially if the South African top order goes to town on the quicks.
South Africa
The Proteas head into this fixture with the same side that did duty in the ODIs. It’ll be interesting to see whether the likes of Dale Steyn and Faf du Plessis are played here. I imagine we’ll see more of the guys who never featured in the ODIs. Heinrich Klaasen, Chris Morris, Tabraiz Shamsi and Farhaan Behardien should all get runs in the starting XI on Saturday.
Neither Steyn nor du Plessis featured in a 41-run win against a Cricket Australia XI, so we can safely assume they’re unlikely to take the field. The top and middle order were brilliant in that warm-up game as the visitors posted 201-5 in their 20 overs with big contributions from Reeza Hendricks (39), Aiden Markram (45), Heinrich Klaasen (41), Farhaan Behardien (27) and a late cameo from Andile Phelukwayo who clubbed 17 off seven balls.
The bowlers struggled a bit on an IPL-esque wicket, but were still able to keep a pretty talented Cricket Australia XI at arm’s length. They’ll certainly need to be better on Saturday against the full Australian side which possesses the power to blow any team away on its day.
Hopefully the rain predicted to fall stays away. At worst, we could see light showers so we’re likely to get a result at the very least. It’ll be interesting to see how well Shamsi, Zampa and Imran Tahir get on if there is a bit of moisture about.
Verdict: South Africa 91/100
The Proteas come into this clash in excellent form following their comprehensive victory over the Cricket Australia XI. Back them to get the job done against the full Australian side at 91/100.
