After wrapping up the three-match ODI series by winning the first two games, Pakistan will take on South Africa in the third and final match of the series at SuperSport Park, Centurion on Wednesday.
Where to Watch Live:
The second match will begin at 2.30 pm IST (9:00 am GMT) and will be telecast live on SuperSport 2 and Ten Cricket. For live streaming, log on to SuperSport official website.
Overview:
With Pakistan sealing the ODI series after two consecutive wins, Saturday's match has become dead rubber but looking at neck-to-neck contests in the series, the last match could turn into a thriller as well. Pakistan won the first match by 23 runs and the second game by one run, and now they will try for the whitewash.
South Africa, on the other hand, were shocking at home after a convincing performance in the UAE. They will play the last match for pride as the series is over, with the visitors winning two games out of three.
Previous Meetings:
South Africa have a 46-23 win-loss record against Pakistan in the 70 ODIs played so far.
Team News:
Pakistan are expected to rest some of their senior players and let fresh faces play on Saturday, now that they have won the series. However, the team management has not revealed any changes so far.
South Africa are going to rest Dale Steyn and Jacques Kallis, despite being under pressure to win the match. Morne Morkel could replace Steyn but it is not sure who would take the place of Kallis.
Preview:
Pakistan put up 262 in the previous match which was reduced to 45 overs due to bad weather. Ahmed Shehzad's calculated century, and contributions from Sohaib Maqsood (42) and Umar Akmal (42) helped the team put up a big total despite some batsmen getting out cheaply. They have a good batting line-up but inconsistency of some players will worry them.
Junaid Khan took three wickets and Shahid Africa two in the previous match. Bowlers need to take early wickets and restrict the score of the opponents.
South Africa were on the brink of winning the previous game but that was not to happen as they were short of one run. Hashim Amla's 89, skipper AB de Villiers' 74 and Quinton de Kock's 47 almost took the team home but batsmen who came after them failed to give a winning touch. They will miss Jacques Kallis on Saturday and it will be interesting to see how they fair without him.
The absence of Dale Steyn, who took six wickets in the previous match, will give a big blow to bowling department.
South Africa have not suffered whitewash in ODI at home but it could happen this time, as Pakistan are high on confidence after winning the previous two games. The visitors also won the ODI played in their ground earlier this year.
Prediction:
Pakistan are favourites to win.
Squads:
South Africa: AB de Villiers (captain), Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock, JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, Jacques Kallis, Ryan McLaren, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Vernon Philander, Graeme Smith, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe.
Pakistan: Misbah-ul-Haq (captain), Mohammad Hafeez, Ahmed Shehzad, Umar Akmal, Umar Amin, Shahid Afridi, Sohaib Maqsood, Sohail Tanvir, Anwar Ali, Junaid Khan, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Nasir Jamshed, Asad Shafiq, Bilawal Bhatti.
