St. Elizabeth CA are champions of the 2022 Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) T20 Bashment after a 10-run win over the Jamaica Defence Force via the Duckworth-Lewis method at Sabina Park in Kingston on Sunday.
St. Elizabeth won the toss and chose to bat first, a decision than looked like the wrong one after they lost three quick wickets in the first six overs.
Carl Wright (3), Jordan Holness (1) and Kerry Holness (7) were all dismissed early as they found themselves 20-3 after 5.4 overs.
A crucial fourth wicket partnership of 89 between captain Damion Ebanks and Andre McCarthy followed and the innings was rescued.
By the time McCarthy was dismissed for a run-a-ball 24 in the 16th over, the platform was set for fireworks in the back-end. Those fireworks were provided by Ebanks, who made a 42-ball 56 including three fours and five sixes, and Troy Powell. Powell belted the JDF bowling all over Sabina Park to finish 55 not out off just 19 balls, hitting seven fours and four sixes.
In the end, St. Elizabeth posted an intimidating 182-7 off their 20 overs. Pacer Gordon Bryan took 3-25 while Richard Young ended with 2-33 off three overs for JDF.
JDF, in their turn at the crease, found themselves in a similar position to St. Elizabeth, losing three wickets before the end of the first powerplay of six overs.
After 4.5 overs, they were scoring well at 34 but Tevin Gilzene (7), Marlon Saunders (3) and Kevin Daley (11) were all already back in the shed.
Deethmar Anderson and Gordon Bryan then formed a partnership that produced 69 runs before Anderson was dismissed for 44 in the 14th over to leave the Soldiers 103-4. The score quickly became 104-5 as Bryan was removed for 28 at the start of the 15th over.
All-rounder Dennis Bulli then made his way to the wicket and had a brief cameo, 19 off just six balls including three sixes, but his dismissal in the 16th over effectively ended JDF’s hopes of chasing the total down.
The end came prematurely, however, as the umpires got together after 17 overs and decided that the light was insufficient for play, putting an end to proceedings with JDF on 139-6, needing 43 runs off 18 balls, and being 10 runs short of the Duckworth-Lewis par score of 149 after 17 overs.
Pacer Omar Samuels took 2-13 from three overs for the champions.
Harry Brook and Ben Stokes impressed as England stormed to a six-wicket triumph over Pakistan at the Gabba in their final warm-up fixture before the T20 World Cup.
Pakistan set England a target of 161, led by opener Shan Masood top-scoring with 39 runs off 22 deliveries, while David Willey impressed with the ball by taking two wickets for England.
England opener Phil Salt was bowled by Naseem Shah for just one run, but a rapid innings from Stokes (36 off 18), coupled with Liam Livingstone's 28, put England in good stead to secure victory by the time of their dismissals.
Brook scored 45 not out from 24 balls and Sam Curran smashed an unbeaten 33 from just 14 to finish the job as England chased down Pakistan's total in just 14.4 overs.
England middle order impresses
With their openers producing a combined 10 runs off 16 balls, it fell on the middle order to win England the match, and they did so in thrilling fashion.
Stokes, Livingstone, Brook and Curran smashed the ball to all areas and accounted for all 12 of their team's sixes.
Each of that quartet finished with strike rates of at least 175 to help England to a morale-boosting victory before their World Cup campaign gets underway against Afghanistan on Saturday.
Jordan improves after tough start
Pakistan ended up on 160-8 from 19 overs, with the match shortened slightly due to a brief rain stoppage.
They had threatened a bigger total, with Chris Jordan smashed for 27 off his first two overs without taking a wicket, but the England bowler steadied the ship to finish with figures of 1-36 from four, including a final over which went for just three runs and included the wicket of Mohammad Wasim (26).
Jordan's bowling at the death ensured England's target was achievable, and they then chased it down comfortably.
Mohammed Shami made a sensational return to the India set up as his blistering final over helped secure a six-run win over Australia in a pulsating T20 World Cup warm-up fixture.
Shami replaced the injured Jasprit Bumrah for the tournament Down Under and four wickets fell from the final four deliveries with defending champions Australia requiring 11 to win.
That was Shami's only over of the game at the Brisbane Cricket Ground, a match where Aaron Finch (76) found form but only three other Australia batsmen made double figures as they were bowled for 180 – losing six wickets for just nine runs from the final two overs.
Earlier, KL Rahul (57 off 33) and Suryakumar Yadav (50 off 33) had guided India to 186-7, a total that had looked under-par until Shami's heroics.
Shami steals the show
Shami was overlooked by India originally in favour of rising stars Arshdeep Singh and Harshal Patel but Bumrah's misfortune provided him an opportunity, and boy did he take it in a brilliant final over that had started with Pat Cummins taking a couple of twos, before the Australia paceman came unstuck by a scarcely believable one-handed catch by Virat Kohli on the boundary.
More great work by Kohli saw Ashton Agar run out when trying to sneak a bye, which preceded a couple of stunning Yorkers, uprooting the wickets of Josh Inglis and Kane Richardson, who had been the pick of Australia's bowlers with figures of 4-30.
Finch finds his wings again
Australia may have lost the unlosable but a massive takeaway for the hosts was captain Finch finding form on the eve of the World Cup.
Finch had managed only one half-century in his past 10 T20I knocks, and amassed just 25 runs across three innings in the series loss to England. The Australia skipper not only scored runs against India, but did so with a strike rate of 140.74.
South Africa's bowlers tuned up for the T20 World Cup with a dominant display to help the Proteas to a nine-wicket victory over New Zealand at Allan Border Field on Sunday.
Stand-in captain Keshav Maharaj claimed 17-3 as South Africa skittled the Black Caps for 98, chasing down the target in 11.2 overs led by opener Rilee Rossouw's 54 not out.
The Proteas, who are due to commence their World Cup campaign against a qualifier on Sunday in Hobart, triumphed without Quinton de Kock, who was rested, and skipper Temba Bavuma, who is being eased into training with a view to playing in their final warm-up game against Bangladesh on Wednesday.
Last year's World Cup runners-up New Zealand, who will face Australia in the tournament opener on Saturday at the SCG, struggled throughout with the bat, with Martin Guptill top scoring with 26.
Wayne Parnell (8-2 from two overs) removed opener Finn Allen and skipper Kane Williamson cheaply within the opening three overs. The Black Caps threatened to rebuild until Glenn Phillips fell for 20 skying a drive to Marco Jansen off Tabraiz Shamsi, prompting a collapse of 45-8.
There was little resistance after Guptill was trapped LBW trying to sweep from Maharaj for 26 from 23 deliveries, as Shamsi finished with 6-2 from his three overs including a rare maiden.
The Proteas made light work of the chase, with Rossouw's unbeaten 54 coming from 32 balls with nine fours and one six, while Reeza Hendricks added 27 from 24 deliveries.
Parnell responds with blistering spell
South Africa's attack was on song, led by Parnell who managed nine dot balls despite only being used for two overs up front. Allen had blasted Parnell for a maximum with the first ball of the game but the left-armer fought back with a spell which set the tone.
Nicholas Pooran joined the other captains on Saturday to launch the Big Show and the stage is now set for the marquee cricket event of the year. West Indies skipper was among the 16 men in charge as they made history, coming together Melbourne, Australia – one of the world’s iconic sporting cities. This was the first time all captains came together at an ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
The Captains’ Day marks the start of the eighth edition of the event that promises to keep more than a billion cricket fans across the globe on the edge of their seats from start to finish. Pooran is charged with leading the West Indies as they go in search of an unprecedented third title. Daren Sammy was at the helm in 2012 and 2016 when the West Indies lifted the trophy – making them the only team to win the coveted title twice – a rich legacy.
Pooran told the audience: “To be honest, I don’t feel like there’s a lot of pressure … we believe that we are a new group of guys, yes, we are new when it comes to T20 cricket. We start at the bottom … think we have the toughest way to the World Cup, and the guys understand that. I keep telling them it may be a blessing in disguise for us to start in the qualifiers first. Obviously everyone knows when you want something you have to work really hard for it.” He added: “But yes, we want to qualify, and obviously there's some pressure, as well, but the guys are not thinking about that. We just want to focus on ourselves and try to play the best cricket we can.”
The big event gets underway on Sunday at 3pm local time when Sri Lanka face Namibia at Kardinia Park Stadium in Geelong in Group A. It will be followed by the United Arab Emirates against the Netherlands at 7pm local time. This marks the first of 45 matches over 28 days with the champions to be crowned at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 13 November.
West Indies will bowl off their campaign on Monday against Ireland at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart. First ball is 3pm local time (12 midnight Eastern Caribbean/11pm Jamaica). The two teams are in Group B alongside Zimbabwe and Scotland. The two top teams in the preliminary round will advance to the Super12s stage of the event.
Former West Indies all-rounder Deandra Dottin’s cameo with the bat was not enough as her Adelaide Strikers lost by 17 runs to the Sydney Sixers in the Women’s Big Bash League at the Ray Mitchell Park in Mackay, Australia on Friday.
The Sydney Sixers Women won the toss and elected to bat, posting 152-2 from their 20 overs thanks to a brilliant 67-ball 82 not out from New Zealander Suzie Bates. Her knock included eight fours and two sixes. Sixers captain Ellyse Perry supported well with 58 from 44 deliveries including five fours and two sixes. Dottin took 0-21 from her three overs.
With the bat, Dottin was the second highest scorer of the innings with a 16-ball 25 including one four and three sixes as the Strikers were restricted to 134-9 from their 20 overs. Aussie Katie Mack top-scored with 34 while South African Laura Wolvaardt added 22 against English left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone’s brilliant 4-17 off four overs.
Dottin announced her retirement from international cricket in August.
Cricket West Indies (CWI), on Saturday, paid tribute to Bruce Pairaudeau, the former West Indies and Guyana batsman who passed away at age 91 in New Zealand where he has resided since the late 1950s.
Pairaudeau was a stylish middle-order batsman, who made a century on his Test debut against India at the Queen’s Park Oval in 1953. On that occasion he scored 115 and added a then record stand of 219 for the fifth wicket with Sir Everton Weekes, who made 207. He ended his Test career in 1957 amassing 454 runs in 13 matches.
Pairaudeau made his first-class debut for then British Guiana at age 15 and played 89 first-class matches, where he scored 4930 runs with 11 centuries. A significant portion of his first-class career was with Northern Districts in New Zealand, where he led them to the Plunket Shield title.
Speaking on behalf of CWI, President Ricky Skerrit said: “Bruce Pairaudeau was one of the pioneers of the game in Guyana and the West Indies who played a significant role in paving the way for others to follow, and for this he will always be remembered. He was a highly-regarded batsman who made an immediate impression on the world stage with a top-class century on debut. After he moved to New Zealand, he never lost touch with West Indies cricket and would always visit the team whenever they toured to offer his support and encouragement. CWI hereby extends our deepest condolences to his family and many friends.”
David Warner could miss Australia's final T20 World Cup warm-up match against India on Monday through injury, but captain Aaron Finch is confident the batsman will be fit for the tournament.
Warner suffered an injury to his neck during the second T20I match against England on Wednesday, which forced him to miss the series finale on Friday – a match that was abandoned due to rain.
Finch is unsure whether his fellow opener will be fit enough to face India, but has no concerns over Warner's availability for the clash against New Zealand on October 22.
"I think he would definitely be right for New Zealand," Finch said. "I'm not sure about the warm-up game against India.
"I think he was okay the day after he hit his head and then the following day, his neck got really sore and stiff.
"We'll wait and see what it's like. If he's fit he'll play. If he's still a little bit sore, we'd err on the side of caution.
"I think when you've got experienced players who know what they need to do to be ready for a tournament, you're not too concerned whether they play that game or not."
Finch also confirmed Australia are taking it easy with all-rounders Marcus Stoinis and Mitchell Marsh in a bid to avoid injury flare-ups.
Stoinis missed both T20I series against India and the West Indies with a side injury he sustained in September, while Marsh has not bowled in a match since injuring an ankle in the ODI series against Zimbabwe in August.
"Stoinis, the reason he wasn't available to bowl yesterday was just prior injury history," Finch explained.
"Every time that he's tried to come back and ball back-to-back games coming off the same injury he has struggled and got a niggle on the back of it. So, we went with the conservative route there."
"Mitch has been building up his bowling at the moment. He just hasn't been at the intensity to go into a game that's required especially so close to a World Cup."
Police CA, St. Elizabeth CA, St. James CA and the Jamaica Defence Force will contest the semi-finals of the Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) T20 Bashment at Sabina Park on Saturday.
Police are, so far, unbeaten in the competition having won five games and having two abandoned due to rain to finish top of Pool 3.
In the quarterfinals last Saturday, they secured a 27-run win over Kingston Cricket Club at Chedwin Park to advance to the last four. They batted first and made 132-6 from their 20 overs thanks to a top-score of 51 off as many deliveries from Courtney Allen that included one four and four sixes. Medium-pacer Andre Bailey took 3-37 for Kingston. In reply, Kingston could only manage 105-9 from their 20 overs as pacer Kemar Anderson starred with 3-13 from four overs for Police. Johnois Sappleton also bowled well with 3-18 from his four overs.
St. Elizabeth CA, Police’s opponents in the first semi-final on Saturday, are also unbeaten having won five matches and having one abandoned to top Pool 1.
They reached the last four after a comfortable eight-wicket win over Pool 2 runners up Clarendon CC in the second game at the Trelawny Multi-Purpose Stadium last Saturday. Batting first, Clarendon were restricted to 125 all out from 19.5 overs. Jamaica Under-19 representative Adrian Weir top-scored with 47 against medium-pacer Andre McCarty’s 3-16 from four overs. Romaine Nembhard supported with 3-30 from his spell. St. Elizabeth then only needed 17.4 overs to reach 126-2 thanks to Bryan Gayle’s 69 not out from 52 deliveries including six fours and three sixes.
The second quarterfinal at Chedwin Park saw Pool 4 winners JDF secure a dominant 76-run win over Pool 3 runners up Kensington Cricket Club to continue their quest to add to their All-Island 50-Over title from earlier this year.
Batting first, JDF scored 152-6 from their 20 overs thanks to 38 from opener Kevin Daley and late contributions from Jamaica Scorpions pacer Gordon Bryan (29 not out) and captain Leighton Leslie (27 not out). Kensington skipper Ryan Francis took 2-28 from his four overs. Kensington’s chase never got going as only two players got into double figures before they were dismissed for a paltry 76 in 16.5 overs. Daley capped a fine all-round display with 4-12 from his four overs while Bryan chipped in with 2-19 from three overs and five deliveries.
JDF’s opponents in the second semi-final will be Pool 1 runners up St. James CA who got by Pool 2 winners Manchester CC by six wickets in the first match at the Trelawny Multi-Purpose Stadium last Saturday.
Manchester batted first and made 153-8 from their 20 overs thanks to 47 not out off 23 balls from Brian Clarke and scores of 26 and 24 from Brad Barnes and Jamaine Morgan, respectively. Ziggy Levy took 3-40 from his four overs. Levy then returned to anchor the successful chase for St. James, making a 45-ball 65 not out including eight fours and two sixes at St. James reached 156-4 off their 20 overs. Omari Wright provided good support for Levy with 34 while Morgan took 2-19 from his four overs for Manchester.
Semi-final one bowls off at 9:00 am while the second is scheduled for 2:00 pm. The final will take place on Sunday, also at Sabina Park.
Fakhar Zaman has replaced Usman Qadir in Pakistan's squad for the T20 World Cup in Australia.
Batter Fakhar was selected on Friday, as leg spinner Qadir has not yet recovered from the hairline fracture on his right thumb that he suffered during the recent series defeat to England.
Qadir will be a travelling reserve along with Mohammad Haris and Shahnawaz Dahani.
Fakhar will arrive in Brisbane from London on Saturday along with fit-again paceman Shaheen Shah Afridi and will be available for selection in the warm-up matches against England next Monday and Afghanistan two days later.
The 31-year-old left-hander was out first ball in his last T20I appearance, a defeat to Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup final just over a month ago.
He has played for his country 71 times in the shortest format, scoring 1,349 runs at an average of 21.75.
Pakistan start their quest to win the World Cup by taking on arch-rivals India at the MCG on October 23.
Pakistan T20 World Cup squad:
Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood.
Mohammed Shami has been called up to replace the injured Jasprit Bumrah in India's T20 World Cup squad.
Bumrah was ruled out of the tournament earlier this month due to a back problem, which will keep the paceman out of action for around six weeks.
A BCCI statement on Friday confirmed Shami, who has not played at all over the past three months, has now joined India's squad in Australia.
Shami, who starred for Indian Premier League champions Gujarat Titans earlier this year, was included in India's squad for their T20I series against Australia and South Africa, only to test positive for COVID-19.
Mohammed Siraj was named the player of the series against South Africa, which India won 2-1, and has been named as a back-up alongside Shardul Thakur.
While Shami has not featured in recent months, he always seemed a likely option to replace Bumrah due to his experience of playing in Australia - he has played Down Under in two Test series and was one of India's best performers with the ball in the 2015 ODI World Cup.
The 32-year-old last played a T20I in last year's World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, taking six wickets in five appearances.
Shami helped the Titans to an IPL title in their maiden season in the competition, taking 20 wickets and playing in all 16 of their games.
India start their World Cup campaign against fierce rivals Pakistan at the MCG a week on Sunday.
India T20 World Cup squad:
Rohit Sharma (captain), Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chaha, Deepak Hooda, Dinesh Karthik, Virat Kohli, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, KL Rahul, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami, Suryakumar Yadav.
West Indies will again be part of one of cricket’s great traditions on the upcoming Test tour of Australia. As part of the preparations for the two-match series the visitors will have a four-day pink ball match against the Australia Prime Minister’s XI.
This will be played at Manuka Oval in Canberra on Wednesday 23 November to Saturday 26 November. The day/might match will be played under lights and will recognize the anniversary of the inaugural fixture in 1951, also against the West Indies.
The match will also form part of the team’s preparations for the series against the Aussies, which will feature the first pink ball Test between the two teams. It will be played on 8 to 12 December at the Adelaide Oval following the first Test at the Optus Stadium in Perth on 30 November to 4 December. The series will be contested for the prestigious Frank Worrell Trophy – named in honor of the legendary West Indies captain. It will also form part of the ICC World Test Championship.
Australia Prime Minister the Hon Mr Anthony Albanese said: “I am delighted to confirm the return of the Prime Minister’s XI this summer, an Australian tradition that spans 70 years. Along with Cricket Australia, I am very excited to be welcoming the West Indies. I grew up loving watching Viv Richards, Malcolm Marshall and Joel Garner, so I’m thrilled my first PM’s XI as Prime Minister will be against the current West Indies stars here in Canberra.”
West indies Test captain Kraigg Brathwaite said: “We’re looking forward to this tour of Australia and there is great energy and readiness in our camp. The match against the Prime Minister’s XI is a major part of the cricket calendar and it will be an honor to lead the West Indies in such a prestigious match.” He added: “My preparation has been going well. I’ve been home for a while so I have been able to do plenty of drills and fitness work as well as playing club cricket and other tournaments … spending time in the middle … for what will be a major tour for us. We have been playing some good Test cricket this year, with very good series wins against England and Bangladesh, and we want to make greater strides in the ICC World Test Championship table.”
Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes impressed before England were denied the chance to press for a 3-0 series clean sweep against Australia by rain in Canberra.
Captain Buttler cracked 65 from 41 balls as England posted 112-2 from 12 overs in the third T20I, their innings having been disrupted twice by downpours at Manuka Oval.
Buttler's fellow opener Alex Hales made a disappointing duck, while Dawid Malan scored 23 and Ben Stokes added an unbeaten 17.
The fifth over of England's innings saw a minor flash point as Australia paceman Starc appear to threaten a 'Mankad' dismissal when he claimed Buttler, later named player of the series, was leaving the crease at the bowler's end too early.
England held a 2-0 lead coming into the final match of the series, after posting eight-run wins in Perth and the first leg of a Canberra double-header, and they had another victory in their sights, particularly when the home team made a dreadful start to their reply.
Australia lost Aaron Finch to the first ball of their innings, with the captain reaching outside off stump and flogging Chris Woakes to Harry Brook at deep point.
Woakes had two wickets in two balls when Mitchell Marsh fell, Mark Wood taking the catch after the batter looked to be caught in two minds and got a leading edge to short third man. Steve Smith fended off the hat-trick ball.
Australia got to 30-3 in their reply from 3.5 overs, with Woakes (3-4 from two overs) having also dismissed Glenn Maxwell, when rain stopped play again.
Five overs needed to be completed for a result to be called, but there was no prospect of play resuming, the teams denied what could have been a useful finale to the contest ahead of the upcoming Twenty20 World Cup campaign.
It has been a long time coming but the T20 World Cup will finally get under way in Australia on Sunday.
Two years later than scheduled due to the coronavirus pandemic, the tournament will start with Sri Lanka taking on Namibia at Kardinia Park followed by the United Arab Emirates versus the Netherlands at the same venue on Sunday.
There will be six days of qualifying matches to decide which four teams will go through to the Super 12, which starts with a repeat of last year's final between holders Australia and New Zealand on October 22.
You could make a case for several teams being strong contenders to lift the trophy at the MCG on November 13.
Stats Perform picks out some of the storylines to look out for in a tournament that will be well worth the wait.
Windies and Sri Lanka should avoid shock early exit
The only team to have won the T20 World Cup twice is West Indies, but they failed to secure direct qualification for the Super 12 on this occasion.
They lost four out of five matches as defending champions in the United Arab Emirates last year, a crushing six-wicket defeat to England setting the tone as they were skittled out for a pitiful 55.
Nicholas Pooran's side will face Scotland, Zimbabwe, Ireland at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart and will be expected to advance from Group B.
Sri Lanka were crowned Asia Cup champions last month and ought to have no trouble in advancing from a Group A that also includes the Netherlands, the UAE and Namibia.
On a high from lifting the trophy in Dubai, Dasun Shanaka's men could be dangerous if they made it through to the Super 12 as expected.
Hosts in quest to make history
Australia ended their wait for a first T20 World Cup title in Dubai last year at the expense of the Black Caps, Mitchell Marsh blasting an unbeaten 77 in the final to seal an eight-wicket win.
No team has won back-to-back T20 World Cup titles, so the hosts have an opportunity to make history on home soil.
Tim David has emerged as another potential match-winner that has bolted his way into the squad and he is capable of making a big impact, while big things will be expected from the likes of David Warner with the bat.
Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins are a formidable pace trio and leg-spinner Adam Zampa brings an X-Factor. Australia have a great chance of achieving a feat no other side has accomplished.
Can India make amends?
India were strongly fancied to win the rearranged T20 World Cup last year, but their challenge was all-but over soon after it had started.
They were consigned to a 10-wicket thrashing by fierce rivals in Pakistan in their first match and still looked shellshocked when New Zealand hammered them by eight wickets.
Virat Kohli stepped down as captain after that failure, with Rohit Sharma the skipper of what is another star-studded squad.
The loss of paceman Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja to injury were huge blows, but India will be expected to mount a strong challenge as the top-ranked side in the world and batter Suryakumar Yadav can make a big impact.
Buttler to deliver in first tournament as skipper?
England looked unstoppable in the World Cup last year until they were knocked out by New Zealand at the semi-final stage.
Jos Buttler has since taken over as captain after Eoin Morgan retired from international cricket, and Matthew Mott was appointed as head coach.
Buttler has recovered from injury for what will be his first tournament as skipper and will look to produce the sort of form he did in the 2021 World Cup, in which he averaged a staggering 89.66.
England have huge firepower with the bat, while Reece Topley, Mark Wood and Adil Rashid are among the bowlers Buttler will be counting on to step up as they strive to lift the trophy for a second time.
Proteas a force to be reckoned with
South Africa have never been beyond the semi-final of a T20 World Cup, but there is every chance this could be their year.
Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi and Anrich Nortje are a hostile trio of pace bowlers and they also have the wizardry of spinner Tabraiz Shamsi.
The absence of Rassie van der Dussen is a big loss, but the Proteas are not short of explosive batting with the likes of Quinton de Kock, David Miller, Rillee Rossouw and Tristan Stubbs to call upon.
Ravi Shastri believes India's Twenty20 side is as strong as it has ever been ahead of the T20 World Cup in Australia.
India failed to qualify from their group at the World Cup in the United Arab Emirates last year following heavy defeats to arch-rivals Pakistan and New Zealand.
Rahul Dravid replaced Shastri as head coach following that tournament and Rohit Sharma took over as captain after Virat Kohli stepped down.
India head into the 2022 World Cup at the top of the rankings, with expectations of being strong contenders to dethrone the hosts.
They will be without injured paceman Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, but Shastri fancies their chances.
He said: "I have been part of the system for the last six-seven years, first as a coach and now I am watching from the outside, and I think this is as good a line-up as India has ever had in T20 cricket.
"With Surya [Suryakumar Yadav] at number four, Hardik [Pandya] at number five, and Rishabh Pant or Dinesh Karthik at number six, it makes a massive difference as it allows the top order to play the way they are playing."
However, there is one area of concern for legendary former all-rounder Shastri as India prepare for their opening match against Pakistan at the MCG on October 23.
"One area that India will have to pick up and start right from the beginning is fielding," Shastri said.
"They need to work hard and get their A-game on the field when they step out against Pakistan.
"Those 15-20 runs that you save can make all the difference because otherwise every time you get out to bat, you need to get 15-20 runs extra."
India will also face South Africa, Bangladesh and two qualifiers in Group 2.
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