The Indian team will be aiming to avoid a rare T20I series defeat to South Africa when they take on the Proteas when both teams square off in the iconic Wanderers stadium in Johannesburg on December 14.

India were handed a five-wicket loss by South Africa in the rain-affected match on December 12 in Gqeberha, despite a fantastic batting performance captain Suryakumar Yadav and Rinku Singh, who scored 68 off just 39 balls and remained unbeaten on the day.

The conditions did have a major role in the loss as the Indian bowlers found it hard to grip the ball in Gqeberha as Reeza Hendricks made the most of the opportunity during the powerplay overs and put the Indian bowlers to the sword.

With rain expected to stay away in Johannesburg, India will look to ensure they don’t suffer a series defeat to the Proteas for the first time since 2015. India’s last series loss to South Africa in the shortest format of the game came in 2015 at home as they lost 2-0 with the final match of the series being abandoned.

Since then, India has won two out of the four T20I series played between both sides with the other two being drawn ones. The defeat in Gqeberha was also India’s sixth straight loss in all formats of the game in South Africa and it will be one streak they would be keen to end.

With the stakes raised, Suryakumar and his team will be hoping for a better performance on the day in Johannesburg, a ground where India has won three out of their five T20I matches so far. This also includes India’s famous 2007 T20 World Cup final win over Pakistan.

Bowling will be one of the areas where India will look for instant improvement, with the likes of Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj leaking runs in the second game.

SA vs IND, 3rd T20I Predicted XI

This brings us to the lineups for the third match between both sides and the main focus will be on the Indian team. The openers, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill, achieved an unwanted record as they were both dismissed for ducks. However, with Ruturaj Gaikwad’s recovery from illness still a doubt we could see both men continue at the top.

Tilak Varma impressed with his cameo on the day and can be expected to retain his place. The next three in the lineup is expected to remain the same with Suryakumar at four, followed by Rinku and Jitesh Sharma.

With no other pacers to call up on, with Deepak Chahar still away due to a family emergency, India will be banking on Siraj, Mukesh Kumar and Arshdeep to step up with a better performance on Thursday. Ravi Bishnoi could be forced to warm the bench once again as India could persist with Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja for this one.

For South Africa, they are forced into a few changes with Gerald Coetzee and marco Jansen unavailable for the match. This could provide them a chance to bring Keshav Maharaj into the side and provide a chance for Nandre Burger or Ottniel Baartman.

India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Mohammed Siraj.

South Africa: Matthew Breetzke, Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram (c), Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Keshav Maharaj, Andile Phehlukwayo, Nandre Burger/Ottniel Baartman, Lizaad Williams, Tabraiz Shamsi.