South Africa started the series with a fantastic win in the Boxing Day Test, defeating Pakistan at Newlands Cricket Ground. With this victory, South Africa secured a spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) Final.
The match was an exciting contest, with Pakistan’s bowlers putting in a commendable performance, especially Faheem Ashraf, who impressed with a five-wicket haul in the first innings. South Africa’s batting was solid in the first innings, but they experienced a collapse while chasing the target. However, Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen stepped up, holding the innings together to secure the win.
Pakistan’s Mohammad Abbas was the standout bowler of the match, taking 6 wickets for just 54 runs, causing trouble for the South African batsmen. Despite Pakistan’s valiant effort with the ball, their batting didn’t contribute enough, as they only managed to set a target of 148 for South Africa, which was successfully chased down.
What We Expect in the 2nd Match:
South Africa’s Expected Playing XI for the 2nd Test:
1. Ryan Rickleton
2. Aiden Markram
3. Wiaan Mulder (capt)
4. Tristan Stubbs
5. Temba Bavuma (capt)
6. David Bedingham
7. Kyle Verreynne (wk)
8. Marco Jansen
9. Keshav Maharaj
10. Kagiso Rabada
11. Kwena Maphaka
This second Test is expected to be another closely contested match between South Africa and Pakistan. While South Africa comes into the match with confidence after their win, Pakistan will be looking to bounce back with a strong bowling attack led by Abbas and a more composed batting performance.
Pakistan’s Expected Playing XI:
1. Shan Masood (capt)
2. Saim Ayub
3. Babar Azam
4. Kamran Ghulam
5. Saud Shakeel
6. Mohammad Rizwan (wk)
7. Salman Ali Agha
8. Aamer Jamal / Noman Ali
9. Naseem Shah
10. Mohammad Abbas
11. Khurram Shahzad
The South Africa vs Pakistan 2nd Test, along with the India vs Australia series, is set to kick off at 2:00 PM IST