Women’s T20 World Cup 2023, Match 1, South Africa Women vs Sri Lanka Women: Probable XIs, Match Prediction, Pitch Report, and Live Streaming Details

South Africa and Sri Lanka are set to face each other in the first match of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 on Thursday, February 9. The match will take place at Newlands in Cape Town.

South Africa, led by Sune Luus, will be brimming with confidence after winning their recent T20I tri-series, involving India and the West Indies. They defeated Harmanpreet Kaur’s India by five wickets in the final, riding on Chloe Tryon's 32-ball 57, with the help of six fours and two sixes.

All-rounder Dane van Niekerk isn’t a part of the squad after she was left out due to "fitness issues." Marizanne Kapp didn’t take part in the tri-series final after she went on compassionate leave to attend to her wife, van Niekerk, who was "broken" after missing out on a T20 World Cup berth.

Kapp is expected to play a key role for South Africa in both the batting and bowling departments. Laura Wolvaardt, Shabnim Ismail, and Ayobonga Khaka are also proven match-winners at the highest level.

Sri Lanka, on the other hand, will be captained by Chamari Athapaththu, their leading run-scorer in the format. Hasini Perera, one of Sri Lanka’s first-choice openers, won’t be a part of the World Cup due to injury.

Vishmi Gunaratne, who played for the Lankans in the U19 World Cup in South Africa, is a part of the 15-member squad. The likes of Nilakshi de Silva, Oshadi Ranasinghe, and Kavisha Dilhari are also tried-and-tested customers.

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South Africa Women vs Sri Lanka Women Match Details:

Match: South Africa Women vs Sri Lanka Women, Match 1, Women’s T20 World Cup 2023

Date and Time: February 9, 2023, Thursday, 10.30 pm IST

Venue: Newlands, Cape Town

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South Africa Women vs Sri Lanka Women Pitch Report

The pitch in Newlands is expected to be a decent one for batting. An overly high-scoring match may not be on the cards. Fielding first after winning the toss should be the way forward for teams as sides chasing have won the most number of games.

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South Africa Women vs Sri Lanka Women Weather Forecast

There is no chance of rain for the time being. Temperatures will be around the 22-degree Celsius mark and the humidity will be in the 60s.

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South Africa Women vs Sri Lanka Women Probable XIs

South Africa Women

Laura Wolvaardt, Tazmin Brits, Lara Goodall, Sune Luus (c), Chloe Tryon, Marizanne Kapp, Nadine de Klerk, Sinalo Jafta (wk), Shabnim Ismail, Ayabonga Khaka, and Nonkululeko Mlaba.

Sri Lanka Women

Chamari Athapaththu (c), Harshitha Madavi, Sathya Sandeepani, Vishmi Gunaratne, Kavisha Dilhari, Nilakshi de Silva, Anushka Sanjeewani (wk), Oshadi Ranasinghe, Inoka Ranaweera, Sugandika Kumari, and Achini Kulasuriya.

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South Africa Women vs Sri Lanka Women Prediction

South Africa have been in brilliant form and must be high on confidence after winning the tri-series. They will go into the match as favorites.

Prediction: South Africa to win the match.

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South Africa Women vs Sri Lanka Women Live Streaming details and channel list

TV: Star Sports Network

Live Streaming: Hotstar