04 Feb, 19:45 (IST)

Ever since Ishan Kishan retired, the run-rate has dropped considerably. Abhishek Sharma, too, has been retired hurt, with captain Suryakumar Yadav joining Tilak Varma in the middle. South Africa have managed to make a good comeback in the past few overs. 

04 Feb, 19:35 (IST)

Tilak Varma joins Abhishek Sharma, with both players looking to find their mojo. Varma is making a comeback after an injury, and will need to get into match fitness. Fans can read more about Retired Out here.

04 Feb, 19:29 (IST)

FIFTY! Ishan Kishan manages to hit a 20-ball half-century, hitting bowlers all over the park. Kishan's innings included two fours and seven sixes.  Kishan is walking back as the player is retired out. Tilak Varma joins Abhishek Sharma. 

04 Feb, 19:22 (IST)

FIFTY! Team fifty up for India, with Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan notching up a half-century run stand for the opening wicket. Ishan Kishan has done most of the scoring, while Abhishek Sharma is slowly catching up. South Africa's bowlers have yet to find their line and lenght. 

04 Feb, 19:15 (IST)

Ishan Kishan has looked in brutal form thus far. The left-handed opener is not shying away from hitting his shots, while Abhishek Sharma is struggling to find his mojo. 

04 Feb, 19:07 (IST)

Steady start by Ishan Kishan and Abhishek Sharma for India, with 14 runs coming off the first over. Kishan has charged from the get-go and has continued his form from the New Zealand series. 

04 Feb, 18:46 (IST)

Rules for warm-ups make all players in the squad eligible to take part in the match, irrespective of their name in the XI or not

04 Feb, 18:40 (IST)

India Batting and Fielding XI: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav              South Africa Batting and Fielding XI: Aiden Markram (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, Jason Smith, David Miller, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada

04 Feb, 18:33 (IST)

TOSS! India win the toss, Suryakumar Yadav opts to bat, despite the dew expected to make their presence felt in Navi Mumbai. Yadav confirmed that Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan will open for India. 

04 Feb, 18:24 (IST)

Hello and welcome to LatestLY's coverage of India's final warm-up ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, which will be a repeat of the T20 WC 2024 Final against South Africa. 

Defending champions India are facing South Africa in their final warm-up fixture of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at the Dr DY Patil Sports Academy. You can find India national cricket team vs South Africa cricket team match scorecard here. The match serves as a vital dress rehearsal for both sides before the tournament officially begins this Saturday. Most Runs in ICC T20 World Cup: From Virat Kohli to David Warner, A Look at Top 5 Highest Run-Scorers in Tournament History.

The primary narrative for the Indian camp revolves around the second opening slot. With captain Suryakumar Yadav and Abhishek Sharma likely to occupy the top order, the spotlight is on Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan, and assessing the fitness of middle-order batter Tilak Varma.

Led by Aiden Markram, South Africa arrives with momentum following a 2–1 series victory over the West Indies. The Proteas will lean heavily on their pace battery, featuring Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje, to exploit the bounce at the DY Patil Stadium. ICC T20 World Cup 2026: Shubman Gill Axed, Axar Patel Named Vice-Captain; Ishan Kishan Returns As India Name Squad

As the 2024 runners-up, South Africa views this match as a crucial psychological bridge to overcome their narrow seven-run loss to India in the previous World Cup final.