India are poised to face South Africa in the first T20I of the three-match series on September 28 (Wednesday).  The match will be played at the Greenfield Stadium in Kerala. The men in blue will head into this contest riding on an emphatic 2-1 series victory over Australia in the shortest format of cricket. On the other hand, South Africa come into this fixture after losing 1-2 in the Test series at England.  The two teams met each other in the T20Is in June this year and shared the spoils after a 2-2 draw. Rohit Sharma's side are currently flying high after their six-wicket win against Australia in Hyderabad, thanks to a brilliant half-century from Virat Kohli and a blistering fifty from Suryakumar Yadav.  India vs South Africa 1st T20I 2022 Preview: Likely Playing XIs, H2H Records, Key Battles and More You Need To Know About IND vs SA Cricket Match in Kerala

The Indian playing XI is likely to see one or two changes in the 1st T20I against the Proteas, especially given the fact that Hardik Pandya has been rested for the whole series. KL Rahul and skipper Rohit Sharma would open the innings with Virat Kohli batting at number three for the hosts. Suryakumar Yadav would retain his batting position at four. Shreyas Iyer would come at five instead of in-form Pandya. The number six slot can be juggled between Dinesh Karthik and Axar Patel given the context of the game.

The bowling department of the hosts is expected to stay same as it was in the 3rd T20I against Australia. Harshal Patel is likely to keep his place in the playing XI.  Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah would be the other two pacers with Yuzvendra Chahal handling the spin-bowling part.  India vs South Africa T20 Head-to-Head Record: Ahead of IND vs SA 1st T20I 2022, A Look at Last Five Results Between Two Nations

India Likely Playing XI vs South Africa 1st T20I 2022.

Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Dinesh Karthik/Rishabh Pant(WK), Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 27, 2022 06:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).