India picked up an emphatic win over South Africa in the first T20I to get the series off to a perfect start. Sanju Samson put on a show and scored 107 to take India to 202-8 before three wickets each by Varun Chakravarthy and Ravi Bishnoi helped India bowl out the hosts for 147, winning the game by 61 runs.
The teams now move to Gqeberha for the second T20I on November 10. The game could also see India make a change in the playing XI. While the teams don't like to change winning combinations, India usually follow a rotation policy given the stiff competition in the team.
The batting looks packed and there is absolutely no room for any changes. India have Ramandeep Singh and Jitesh Sharma in the squad and they are likely to get a game at some point in the series, but India probably would refrain from tinkering with a set batting so early. If they can take a 3-0 lead in the series, Ramandeep and Jitesh could get a slot in the team. The change we are expecting is in the bowling department. Yash Dayal and Vijaykumar Vyshak are waiting for their opportunities and one of them, probably Vyshak, could get a game. It will be a tough task for the team to drop a player after just one game, but they also need to test all players. Avesh Khan could be the one who makes way for Vyshak.
India could also think otherwise and step on the park with the same combination. They can aim for a 3-0 lead and then look to give all four benched players a shot in the XI at once. It all depends on what Suryakumar Yadav and VVS Laxman think.
India's Likely XI For 2nd T20I: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan/V Vyshak