India will play South Africa in the first India vs South Africa T20I of a five-match series at home. The match is at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack. South Africa has won the toss and decided to bowl first. Shubman Gill returns after a neck injury, and Hardik Pandya is also back in the team. Suryakumar Yadav will lead India, with Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh leading the pace attack and Varun Chakravarthy bowling spin.
South Africa is captained by Aiden Markram. David Miller and Anrich Nortje are part of their squad. India leads the T20I head-to-head with 18 wins in 31 matches. The last T20 meeting was the 2024 World Cup final, which India won by seven runs. The match will be live on JioHotstar and Star Sports channels in India.
South Africa needs one win in this series to become the most successful T20I team against India. They are currently tied with Australia and England, each having 12 wins against India.
Jasprit Bumrah has 99 T20I wickets, and Hardik Pandya has 98, both close to their 100th milestone. Arshdeep Singh has already taken 105 wickets. Tilak Varma (996) and Sanju Samson (995) are near 1,000 T20I runs. Abhishek Sharma has the highest strike rate among batters with 1,000 T20I runs at 189.51.
India vs South Africa 1st T20 2025: Playing XIs for the 1st T20
Here is a look at the team lineup of India and South Africa for the 1st T20:
| India’s Playing XI | South Africa’s Playing XI |
| Shubman Gill (VC) | Aiden Markram |
| Abhishek Sharma | Quinton de Kock (wk) |
| Suryakumar Yadav (C) | Donovan Ferreira |
| Tilak Varma | Tristan Stubbs |
| Hardik Pandya | David Miller |
| Jitesh Sharma | Dewald Brevis |
| Shivam Dube | Corbin Bosch |
| Axar Patel | Marco Jansen |
| Arshdeep Singh | Anrich Nortje |
| Jasprit Bumrah | Lungi Ngidi |
| Varun Chakravarthy | Keshav Maharaj |
Weather and Pitch Report for India vs South Africa 1st T20
The first T20I of India vs South Africa will be at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack on December 9. The pitch is expected to be in favor of the fast bowlers, as it did in the last T20I here in 2022. Dew is likely in the second innings, which could make chasing easier. Teams winning the toss may prefer to bowl first.
The weather forecast shows heavy cloud cover at 98%, but no rain is expected. Temperatures will be low, around 15°C, and dew could affect bowlers’ performance in both innings.
FAQs
Q. Which channel is streaming the India vs South Africa match?
A. The India vs South Africa T20 2025 series is streaming on the JioHotstar app and website and live on TV via the Star Sports Network in India.
Q. Where is the first India vs South Africa T20I?
A. The first India vs South Africa T20I is at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack.
Q. Who are the captains for India and South Africa?
A. Suryakumar Yadav is India’s captain, and Aiden Markram leads South Africa.
Q. What is India’s T20I record against South Africa?
A. India leads in T20I records, with 18 wins in 31 matches.
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