India vs South Africa, 1st T20I Highlights: Rain washes out series opener in Durban

1st T20I washed out!

MATCH CALLED OFF!

The inevitable has happened in Durban! Rain plays a spoilsport as series opener is washed out with even toss taking place. The drizzle was steady throughout and it refused to budge down. The match officials had to take the hard call! So, India's tour of South Africa begins with a washout.

Update - Amid the drizzle, moments back umpires walked out to the middle with their umbrellas, accessing the conditions. Chances of even a shortened game look slim now.

Update - No official update. The drizzle continues and so does the frustration. The longer it drags on for from here, chances of a washout increase.

Update - Things still look gloomy as it continues to rain in Durban. Spectators have their raincoats and umbrellas on, still hopeful for some play. The players look relaxed in the dressing room at the moment.

Fans patiently wait as rain continues.

(AFP photo)

IND vs SA Live - No official update as the wait continues...

Update - An hour of wait now as the drizzle continues in Durban. It remains steady! We will start losing overs in about 10 minutes from now.

Update - Looks like the drizzle has picked up a bit. The wait continues...

Update - As the drizzle continues, we keep our fingers crossed. We can start losing overs from around 8:10 pm IST.

Toss delayed!

Toss in Durban has been delayed due to rain - CSA

Toss delayed!

It's raining and the pitch is covered. Looks like we will have a delayed toss. Dark clouds are over Durban. Let's hope it clears soon.

IND vs SA T20I Live - The bowling combination

While Ravindra Jadeja is the vice-captain in this series and is expected to bat at No.7. Axar Patel, who hasn't been picked for the series, will certainly be around when squad for the marquee event is selected. The second spinner will certainly be googly specialist Ravi Bishnoi, who is now world's No.1 ranked T20 spinner. Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh and Mukesh Kumar are expected to be the three straight-forward pace bowling choices.

Rain to play a spoilsport?

IND vs SA Live - The Proteas batting firepower!

While there won't be Quinton de Kock in the mix anymore but Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, skipper Aiden Markram, hard-hitting Tristan Stubbs and new batting sensation Matthew Breetzske could make life difficult for Indian bowlers.

Team India all set!

IND vs SA - Stat attack

The conditions

For the likes of Ruturaj, Jaiswal, Rinku and Jitesh, the extra bounce on offer at Kingsmead will pose a different sort of challenge as those with superior back-foot play will be paramount. The Indian bowling attack was put to sword by Australia in most games but in South Africa, the length would be doubly important as the younger crop might find it enticing to dig it in due to the extra bounce.

Where does Ishan bat?

There is the wicketkeeper's slot where Kishan, who will have stiff fight from Jitesh Sharma, who is evolving nicely as a finisher at No. 6. There is a No. 5 slot where Shreyas, who is not exactly a slam-bang from word "go" but an IPL skipper, is expected to be challenged with short-pitched stuff by the likes of Marco Jansen, Gerald Coetzee and Andile Phehlukwayo. But if one plays Iyer, then there would be no place for Rinku Singh, another designated finisher, who himself said that he will be batting at No.5. In case Kishan doesn't find a place in top four, then Jitesh is the option at No. 6.

Batting combination conundrum

Yashasvi Jaiswal has already shown that he belongs to this level and Shubman Gill is now one of the first picks across formats while Ruturaj Gaikwad after his 52-ball-100 will be that much difficult to ignore. And herein lies the problem as Ishan Kishan isn't a great option beyond No. 4 if the troika of Jaiswal, Gill and Gaikwad bat. And at No. 4 is India's No. 1 T20 batter and skipper Suryakumar Yadav, who is the only automatic choice as far as T20 World Cup is concerned.

Will young India ditch safety first approach?

India are carrying 17 players for the T20 series and only three of them -- Shreyas Iyer, Mukesh Kumar and Ishan Kishan are also part of the 50-over format. There will be multiple bone of contention, the openers and No. 3, who will have to shed their archaic safety first approach that had been in India's bane in previous T20 World Cups.

Head-to-head

The South Africa series is the last big international T20 series that India play followed by one against Afghanistan in mid-January.

The 4-1 sweep against the Aussies

Suryakumar Yadav led side beat Australia 4-1 on fabulous batting tracks at home but even the most partisan Indian fan would agree that there was so much less at stake in a series that was held within 72 hours of the World Cup. Australia's core bowling attack was rested and some of the seniors were so tired that they left for home after the third game, having spent almost nine weeks in India.

The combination dilemma

With injured skipper Hardik Pandya out till the start of IPL, lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah taking a break and not much clarity over Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's T20 future ahead of the World Cup in June, one wouldn't be able to read much into either success or failure of the team in South Africa. A clearer picture about India's core for the T20 showpiece would only emerge after a month of cash-rich IPL, with form and fitness at that point being the criteria for selection. If Rohit and Virat are picked in the playing XI, the core will suddenly become very different from the team that is now touring 'Rainbow Nation'.

A young Indian outfit will be asked tough questions, answers to which might not be readily available, when it faces a sturdy South African side.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the first T20 International between India and South Africa.