World Cup 2023, Match 42 | South Africa Predicted XI vs Afghanistan

image-lor7h5pxSouth Africa will be playing against Afghanistan in the World Cup 2023 (Source: AP Photos)

The 2023 World Cup has taken an interesting fold with three teams vying for the semi-final spot. One of them will be in action on November 10, Friday, in the gigantic Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. It's Afghanistan going one-on-one against South Africa and the match commences at 2:00 PM IST.

The Afghanistan side have played some fascinating cricket in the ongoing competition. Whenever they suffered a defeat, the Jonathan Trott-led unit found a way to come back with a win. They have played eight matches, won and lost four each. Thereby, they have eight points in their tally and are in the sixth position.

The Atalans have the equal amount of points as that of Pakistan and New Zealand. But in terms of NRR, their -0.3 NRR accounts to be the lowest of the three. It's a must-win clash for them against the 'Green and Gold' and the Afghans would be hoping to enforce a huge margin of victory against their upcoming opposition.

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On the flip side, South Africa seemed like a high soaring unit until their defeat against Netherlands and India. Their latest loss against the host was almost like a murder of their reputation in the coveted marquee event. The community leaked 326 runs and got folded for paltry 83 runs.

The Proteas have 12 points from eight games and have already qualified for the semi-finals. They will be facing Australia in the knockouts and this could mean a preparatory contest to the team. However, Pakistan and New Zealand would be wishing for a South Africa triumph.

Keeping all the above things in mind, let us have a look at the South Africa Predicted XI against Afghanistan.


Openers: Quinton de Kock and Temba Bavuma

South Africa should march on with the same opening combination of Quinton de Kock and Temba Bavuma at the top of the order. It provides them the left and right handed combo that makes it challenging for the opposition bowlers.

De Kock is riding one of the best ICC tournaments of his career and is the leading run-getter with 550 runs from eight innings. He has struck four tons in the ongoing competition and is in some form at the moment.

Meanwhile, Bavuma has looked off-coloured in the mega-event. He was in good form prior to the start of the World Cup, scored a century against Australia at home but failed to shine in the Championship event.


Middle Order: Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller

The South African middle order is one of the most dominating ones in the current World Cup. Rassie has already struck two centuries, Markram has already bludgeoned the second fastest ton of the World Cup against Sri Lanka and Heinrich Klaasen was spotted to storm around the parks in recent times.

The top five have played so well that it did not require Miller to additionally contribute to a greater extent. There have been two such occasions when they did not go on song and it was against the Netherlands and India. Rassie is the grafter, Markram can switch his gears according to the situation while Klaasen and Miller are synonymous with destruction.


All-rounders: Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj

The two primary all-rounders of South Africa are Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj. The former has been brilliant with the new ball but numbers from his last game will tell a whole different story. The tall, lanky fast bowler had a rare bad day against India but scalped 17 wickets from eight innings.

Maharaj adds depth to the batting order and has been outstanding with the ball in Indian conditions. He was quite economical and claimed 12 wickets from eight innings. When India stockpiled 326 runs in the Eden Gardens, Kolkata, Maharaj gave away just 30 runs from his full quota and snapped a wicket. He conceded even less than 10% of the total runs in the first innings.


Bowlers: Gerald Coetzee, Lizaad Williams, and Lungi Ngidi

Since South Africa have already made the cut for the knockouts, they could test their bench strength. In that case, they may rest Kagiso Rabada and bring in Lizaad Williams. The former has been outstanding with the ball but suffered from back spasms a week back. So it could be a good way to manage the Proteas spearhead. Williams played the game against Bangladesh and scalped a couple of wickets.

The surfaces in Ahmedabad are good for pacers and the ones who possess good variation. Gerald Coetzee will certainly be a good fit for the conditions and may come back into the XI for Tabraiz Shamsi. Lungi Ngidi should be the other pacer in the bowling department.


South Africa Predicted XI against Afghanistan

Quinton de Kock (wk), Temba Bavuma(c), Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Gerald Coetzee, Lungi Ngidi, Lizaad Williams