All eyes will be on star pacer Jasprit Bumrah when India and South Africa square off in the opening Twenty20 International of the five-match series in Cuttack. The Indian pace spearhead, who was rested for the ODIs, is about to make history when they return to action.
India’s tour of South Africa has been uneventful. The hosts recovered to win the ODI series 2-1 after the visitors startled them with a commanding sweep in the Test series. The series now shifts to the T20I leg, where both teams start the tour’s last leg at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack.
The elite 100-wicket T20I club is just one wicket away for Bumrah.
Bumrah, meanwhile, has 99 wickets at an average of 18.11 from 80 Twenty20 Internationals going into the series. After Arshdeep Singh, the right-arm pacer is expected to become just the second Indian bowler to reach 100 wickets in Twenty20 Internationals. Rashid Khan of Afghanistan leads the world rankings with 182 wickets, while Arshdeep leads India’s list with 105.
India begins their ten-match ICC T20 World Cup preparation phase.
Bumrah would be the first Indian bowler to ever collect 100 wickets in all three international forms if he takes a wicket tonight. No other Indian bowler has ever accomplished this feat. He has taken 234 wickets in 52 Test matches and 149 in 89 One-Day Internationals. The 31-year-old is also getting closer to reaching 500 international wickets once more. He needs to take 18 more wickets to become one of the Indian bowlers with 500 international wickets, as he currently has 482.
India’s 10-match preparation phase for the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 also begins with this T20I series. The forthcoming T20I series is crucial for the team’s overall preparation because coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Suryakumar Yadav have yet to lose a T20I series together. Notably, Hardik Pandya is making a comeback after fully recovering from an injury to his neck, and Shubman Gill is also making a comeback.
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