South Africa T20 League

24th Match: JSK vs PR

Preview

JSK and PR will lock horns for the 24th match of the South Africa T20 League 2023. The match will be played at The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg on Friday, 03 February at 05:00 PM IST. A cracker of battle awaits between the 3rd-placed Paarl and the 4th-placed Joburg. JSK currently has 16 points in the 7 matches that the side has played, including 4 wins and 3 losses. Whereas, PR has 17 points in the 8 matches that the side has played, including 4 wins and 4 losses. 

South Africa T20 League is back after a short break. The last game of this league was played on the 24th of January. SA T20 league is all set to resume after the SA vs ENG ODI series where the Hosts won the series by 2-1.

JSK has 3 more games left in their campaign while PR has just two more. The race to playoffs is getting close for everyone except the table toppers. This match is significant in that context and the Kings would be looking for their 3rd consecutive win at home.

The host JSK hasn't been in the best of form in the batting department. The last win must have boosted their confidence after successfully chasing 179 runs at home. Like the hosts, PR has won their last two consecutive matches batting second. David Miller-led PR chased down 131 and 159 runs in their last two games respectively. Phehlukwayo, Lungi Ngidi, and Shamsi will be the key bowlers to help PR continue their dominance.

The skipper of the side Faf du Plessis scored an unbeaten hundred the last time JSK played at this venue. The right-handed batter Reeza Hendricks also played a good knock opening alongside the captain. Though it was a big win for the home team, it did not put an end to their batting woes. His performance may give some hope to the Kings going ahead.

However, overall it has been an inconsistent batting lineup with only a few reliable batters. Du Plessis at the top and Leus du Plooy in the middle are key players for JSK in the batting order. In the early stage of the SA 20 league, Donavon Ferreira emerged as a match-winning player lower down the order. He is a promising match finisher. Both the batters Leus and Ferreira are responsible for building partnerships in the middle. JSK has got batting all-rounder Neil Brand in their playing XI. And he can be another promising addition in the middle order.

The Windies' all-rounder Romario Shepherd can come in handy with their ability to hit the long ball. The fast gun bowler Alzarri Joseph and Gerald Coetzee are the key pacers in the bowling attack for the side too. JSK has not been consistent much and the skipper would be looking for other bowling options to come good in this match. Shepherd can be economical while Aaron Phangiso can deliver timely breakthroughs.

PR has two more games left and the side would aim at winning both to secure a spot in the playoffs. After failing to chase down 143 runs against MICT, the Royals bounced back quickly. PR chased down a 159-run target in the very next match against PC. The bowlers also continued their dominance as in the next match, the Royals restricted the opposition to 130-7 bowling first. 

The likes of Roy, Buttler, and Miller will be back from the ODI series and have been in great touch. Some of the most impactful T20 players in the world, the trio can deliver game-changing knocks once they get going. Wihan Lubbe, Dane Vilas, and Mitchell van Buuren from the rest of the PR batting lineup. These three have played at different positions in the batting order in recent games.

None of them has made a big impact so far. All these three can be handy partners for Roy, Buttler, and Miller in the run chase. Lungi Ngidi, Phehlukwayo, and Fortuin will be the key bowlers in the PR squad to watch out for. The right-handed batter Evan Jones has also made some significant contributions to the ball lately. After being expensive in previous encounters, he seems to have found his rhythm and can be an impact player for PR.

Match Details

Match: JSK vs PR, 24th Match, South Africa T20 League

Date: Friday, February 03, 2023

Time: 5:00 PM

Venue: The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg

Pitch & Weather Report

This venue is an iconic venue known for many batting fireworks over the years. This is where SA successfully chased down 434 runs in an ODI against almighty Australia in 2006. The average 1st innings score at the Wanderers Stadium in T20Is is 176 runs and 164 in domestic T20s. The Wanderers' pitch is great for batting and it was seen in the last match where the hosts chased down a 170+ target with 8 wickets in hand. The batters would enjoy playing their strokes here and we expect some power hitting in the death overs from both teams. 

Both JSK and PR have won their last two consecutive matches batting second in the SA 20 League. The visitors have been exceptional in both departments. JSK managed to easily chase down a 179-run target in their last match here. The current form and the pitch conditions would make it ideal to bowl first and chase down a total on this ground.

The maximum temperature will remain at 23°C, with a low of 15°C with 75% humidity, and a light wind speed of 13 Km/hr for the 24th SA T20 match on Feb 03 between JSK and PR. Some rain is expected in Johannesburg on the morning of the match day, with a 70% chance of precipitation.

JSK vs PR Squads

JSK: Faf du Plessis (c), Donavon Ferreira (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Neil Brand, Leus du Plooy, Sibonelo Makhanya, Romario Shepherd, Alzarri Joseph, Gerald Coetzee, Maheesh Theekshana, Aaron Phangiso, Lewis Gregory, Lizaad Williams, Malusi Siboto, Kyle Verreynne, Janneman Malan, Nandre Burger, Caleb Seleka, George Garton

PR: Jason Roy, Jos Buttler (wk), Wihan Lubbe, David Miller (c), Dane Vilas, Eoin Morgan, Evan Jones, Ferisco Adams, Bjorn Fortuin, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi, Imran Manack, Corbin Bosch, Andile Phehlukwayo, Obed McCoy, Ramon Simmonds, Mitchell Van Buuren, Codi Yusuf

JSK vs PR Probable XIs

JSK: Faf du Plessis (c), Reeza Hendricks, Neil Brand, Sibonelo Makhanya, Leus du Plooy, Donavon Ferreira (wk), Romario Shepherd, Aaron Phangiso, Gerald Coetzee, Alzarri Joseph, Maheesh Theekshana

PR: Jason Roy, Wihan Lubbe, Jos Buttler (wk), Dane Vilas, David Miller (c), Mitchell Van Buuren, Andile Phehlukwayo, Evan Jones, Bjorn Fortuin, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi

Match Prediction

Both JSK and PR are coming here after a week’s gap, and they may not carry the winning momentum from their last SA20 matches. Nevertheless, a batting-friendly surface will pose a tough challenge to the bowlers on the home team. Both side haven’t found consistent success and only a few of their batters are in good form. PR, on the other hand, has some of the best T20 batters in the world who can propel them to a massive total at this venue. The Visitors, with their overall squad strength and current form, will start as favourites in our match prediction. We say PR to beat JSK in this battle on Friday.

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