Get ready for an epic showdown! Check out our Cricket Match Preview of Australia vs South Africa, featuring key players and predictions.
Australia vs South Africa Preview
Australia come up against South Africa in match ten of the ICC Men’s World Cup in Lucknow on the 12th of October.
Australia played India in their first match of the CWC, and India won by six wickets. Australia won the toss and elected to bat. India started well with the ball by picking up the wicket of Marsh in the 3rd over. Australia continued to find it difficult to score runs against the India bowling attack and they regularly lost wickets all the way through the innings. Australia ended up being bowled out in the 50th over for 199 runs. Australia was off to a fantastic start with the ball as they snared three wickets inside the first two overs. Kohli and Rahul put on an impressive 165 run partnership for the 4th wicket, and this was enough to put India in the box seat. After the dismissal of Kohli, Rahul and Pandya made short work of the remaining 34 runs required and reached the target of 200 runs in the 42nd over.
The top performers in GDS for Australia were.
Josh Hazlewood – 112 points
Mitchell Starc - 77 points
David Warner – 59 points
Steve Smith – 55 points
Glenn Maxwell – 40 points
South Africa played Sri Lanka in their first match of the CWC, and South Africa won by 102 runs. Sri Lanka won the toss and sent South Africa into bat, that may have been a mistake. After losing the wicket of Bavuma in the 2nd over, de Kock and van der Dussen put on 204 runs for the 2nd wicket in quick time. Both players made centuries. Markram was next in and what an innings he had. He scored 106 runs off 54 balls and helped South Africa to a total of 428 runs. In the run chase, Sri Lanka was off to a wobbly start as they lost Nissanka in the 2nd over. Sri Lanka had a decent go at chasing the massive South African total but ended up being all out for 326 runs in the 45th over.
The top performers in GDS for South Africa were.
Aiden Markram – 150 points
Rassie van der Dussen – 141 points
Quinton de Kock – 134 points
Marco Jansen – 90 points
Gerald Coetzee – 89 points
Ekana International Cricket Stadium & Pitch Information
The pitch at Ekana International Cricket Stadium has a reputation of favoring spin bowlers. The climate of Lucknow frequently leans towards the warmer side and potentially leading to the pitch drying out. If this occurs, the pitch will be even more favorable to the spinners. However, after IPL 2023 the pitches at this stadium were all dug up. It sounds like the Australians are expecting a bit of pace and bounce from the new surface. Previously there have been only four ODIs at this stadium, with the highest first innings score of 253 runs. It will be interesting to see how this pitch goes after being dug up earlier this year.
Australia vs South Africa predicted XIs
Australia: David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Alex Carey, Marcus Stoinis/Cameron Green, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa and Josh Hazlewood.
South Africa: Quinton de Kock, Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Marco Jansen, Gerald Coetzee/Tabraiz Shamsi, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi.
Who to play in your GDS starting XI
Batters
The three batters that I am likely going to start will be Temba Bavuma, Steve Smith and David Warner. Over the last ten matches these players average the following points based on the GDS scoring.
Temba Bavuma – 80 points
Steve Smith – 49 points
David Warner – 59 points
Bavuma was unable to cash in on a batting friendly track against Sri Lanka but leading up to the CWC he was the inform batsman for South Africa. In the recent series against Australia in South Africa he averaged 54 runs over four ODIs and this worked out to be 71 points in GDS per match. Smith and Warner were the shining lights with the bat against India a few days ago. Smith hasn’t played a lot of ODI cricket this year, but he has played four ODIs over the last three weeks in India. Across these four matches he averages 51 points in GDS. This average could be a lot higher, but it’s been dragged down due to a duck in Indore. Warner had a decent series against South Africa last month and managed an average of 55 points across the five ODIs. However, three of these scores were under 15 points.
If you don’t have the suggested three players in your squad, I have ranked the remaining batters for Australia and South Africa in the following order. David Miller and Rassie van der Dussen.
All-Rounders
The four all-rounders that I am likely going to start will be Aiden Markram, Marco Jansen, Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh. Over the last ten matches these players average the following points based on the GDS scoring.
Aiden Markram – 101 points
Marco Jansen – 92 points
Glenn Maxwell – 62 points
Mitchell Marsh – 47 points
My top two all-rounders are Jansen and Maxwell for this match. This is due to them both likely to bowl more overs than the other all-rounders predicted to play. I also can’t look past Markram after his blistering innings against Sri Lanka. I do have concerns about Marsh as he hasn’t bowled in an ODI since November 2022. His floor isn’t as high if he continues not to roll his arm round. Marcus Stoinis and Cameron Green are the only other all-rounders predicted to play in this match. Stoinis might be returning from a hamstring injury and may replace the out of form Green in the starting XI. Either of these options may be a better opinion than Marsh as they usually feature in the bowling attack. If you are after a POD selection for your all-rounders in this match, Stoinis or Green are very good options.
Bowlers
The three bowlers that I am likely going to start will be Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa and Keshav Maharaj. Over the last ten matches these players average the following points based on the GDS scoring.
Mitchell Starc – 90 points
Adam Zampa – 62 points
Keshav Maharaj – 67 points
I think picking the starting bowlers is the hardest part of setting your squad for this match. Due to the pitch being dug up earlier this year, I’m not sure what to expect. Some reports indicate that the pitch will be hard to score on and favour the spinners. Other reports suggest that there might be more pace and bounce. I’m leaning the way of the pitch still favouring the spinners and my selections of Zampa and Maharaj reflect this. I’ve also selected Starc to join the two spinners in my starting XI. If there is more pace and bounce in the pitch, I’m expecting Starc to use that to his full advantage.
If you don’t have the suggested three players in your squad, I have ranked the remaining bowlers for Australia and South Africa in the following order. Kagiso Rabada, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins, Lungi Ngidi and Gerald Coetzee/Tabraiz Shamsi.
Wicket Keeper
The wicket keeper that I am likely going to start will be Quinton de Kock. Over the last ten matches the wicket keepers from these teams average the following points based on the GDS scoring.
Quinton de Kock – 68 points
Heinrich Klaasen – 71 points
Alex Carey – 32 points
When a wicket keeper opens the batting, they offer more upside as they are likely to face more deliveries than a wicket keeper batting in the middle order. I favour de Kock over Carey because of this. Klaasen is an interesting option as he averages more than de Kock over their last ten ODIs. I still have to start de Kock over him though. de Kock is the one who starts at wicket keeper and he offers a safer floor with the gloves on.