LIVE: INDIA VS SOUTH AFRICA | 1ST ODI | TOSS & PRE-MATCH | MUMBAI FANCLUB | 2022 SERIES

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PREVIEW: After a Test series for the ages, particularly from the South African perspective, the prospect of three ODIs that do not carry World Cup Super League (WCSL) points is, well, meh. But the subplots starring two diminishing giants should lend the rubber some interest and gravitas.

Quinton de Kock went into the first Test as his team's only proven world class batter. Virat Kohli arrived as India's captain in that format. Neither of those statements remains valid. De Kock abruptly retired from Tests after the Centurion match, and Kohli stepped down in the wake of South Africa's series-clinching win at Newlands on Friday. Both will be under intense scrutiny when the ODIs start in Paarl on Wednesday. It only adds to the narrative that they are the only players across both squads who are in the top 10 batting rankings.

Will De Kock's mind be on the game, or on the daughter his partner gave birth to - their first child - on January 6? Will Kohli play with the freedom that comes with having ditched the cares of captaincy? The Paarl pitch, which is generally better for batting than bowling, should allow those questions to be answered.


But the rest of the conditions equation will not be as benign. Apparently, the thermometer in Janneman Malan's car read 45 degrees when he drove to training last week. Wednesday's forecast is for clear skies and 33 degrees. Even so, South Africa's practice session on Tuesday was cancelled because of rain - a rarity in summer in the Western Cape.

Having topped the averages in the Test series, Temba Bavuma will be keen to continue in that vein. And to take back the wheel of leadership, which he relinquished in September when a fielder's throw broke his thumb while he was batting in an ODI in Colombo. KL Rahul, who is minding India's captaincy until Rohit Sharma gets over a hamstring injury, was one of only two centurions in the Tests, which were played on challenging pitches. He should find Wednesday's surface better for run-scoring.

South Africa might be tempted to rest Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen, who each bowled more than 100 overs in the Test series. But Lungi Ngidi, who bowled 83.4, will probably be in action. Jasprit Bumrah, the only India bowler in the ODI squad who topped 100 overs in the Tests, seems unlikely to be given a break - not least because he is the highest ranked bowler in either squad at No. 7.

South Africa have won only three of their last eight completed ODIs since their series in India in March 2020 suffered a washout in the first games at Dharamsala and had the other two matches postponed for pandemic reasons. Also since then, India have won five of their nine games in the format. That the series has been moved to South Africa accounts for the fact that no WCSL points are up for grabs.

Essentially, that makes it a second-tier affair. Even if that wasn't the case, it would be difficult to imagine the series reaching the levels of drama we saw in the Tests. If it does, we're in for some cracking cricket.

When: Tuesday, 10.30am Local Time

Where: Boland Park, Paarl

What to expect: Hot, flat, slow. And a sad silence where the happy clamour of the country's warmest, most festive crowd might have been.

Team news

South Africa: Temba Bavuma is set to return in the format after an absence of more than four months. That said, he has missed only three ODIs. South Africa are likely to deploy two spinners.


India: KL Rahul, who has played with a fair bit of success in India's middle order in the last couple of years, is set to open alongside Shikhar Dhawan in the absence of Rohit Sharma. With the Indian team management believing that there'll be assistance for the spinners, India might play two slow bowlers.