South Africa Women will take on Sri Lanka in the 1st match of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup at the Newlands in Cape Town. The biggest T20 tournament in Women’s cricket is finally here, and all the 10 teams will be looking to get their hands on the coveted trophy.
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The South African team will be looking to dominate in their home conditions, and they have some brilliant players in their ranks. Captain Sune Luus and Marizanne Kapp are the leading all-rounders of the side, whereas Laura Wolvaardt is their main batter. Shabnim Ismail will again lead the bowling lineup, and she has some able players to support her.
Sri Lanka’s hope will again be on their captain Chamari Athapaththu, who is the ace player of the side. The rest of the team is not looking that strong, and they will have to punch above their weights in order to get some positive results in the tournament.
Newlands Cape Town pitch report
The pitch at the Newlands in Cape Town has always been a competitive one, and we witnessed the same in the ongoing SA20 League as well. This pitch has a lot of pace and bounce but is excellent for the batters as well. If they can survive the initial spells, they will be able to play their shots.
Talking about Women’s cricket particularly, this ground has not been a happy hunting ground for the batters. A total of 5 Women’s T20Is have been played here, the average 1st innings score has been just 129 runs. Out of 5 matches, three matches are won by the teams batting first.
Interestingly, the spinners have dominated the wicket-taking charts in Cape Town in Women’s cricket. West Indies’ Anisa Mohammed is the highest wicket-taker here with 6 wickets in 2 matches. This is the first match of the tournament, so the batters and pacers are expected to do well. Both teams will be looking to chase upon winning the toss here.
