South Africa won the first test match against West Indies by 87 runs and the match finished in just three days. They are going to square off for the second Test on Wednesday, 8th March.
It is a two-match series and that’s why it is important for both teams. Despite knowing that South Africa won the first match easily, they weren’t satisfied with their performance. Yes, their bowling was exceptionally tremendous where Rabada took six wickets in the first innings.
However, in the second innings, the team collapsed to just 116 runs. They made wild strokes, which cost them miserably. Although West Indies’ bowling was amazing in both innings, their batting was a major disappointment.
South Africa vs West Indies 2nd Test updated news
The first test match happened at SuperSport Park in Centurion. During that test, Anrich Nortje felt some discomfort and the medical team told them to rest for the second test match.
It was mild groin discomfort and he needs to take some rest for the upcoming few days. Eventually, it is a huge blow for the South African team because Nortje is a key bowler of the South African squad and he did a remarkable bowling performance by weakening the West Indies bowling order in the first innings. He got five wickets for just 35 runs and contained the visitors to just 212 runs and got an important lead of 130 runs.
In the second test, his service will be missed and Proteas hasn’t gone for any replacement. It means, there is an opportunity for spinners where Keshav Maharaj or Simon Harmer can confirm their place. However, they can also go for Mulder who is popular because of his seam bowling. He may get a chance to perform in front of their home crowd.
The second test match is going to be played in Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg. It will be very interesting to see the live action. Both these teams have good fast bowling options. It all depends on the type of pitch they are presenting in front of visitors.
Pitch Report
It’s always been interesting to watch the live action at Wanderers Stadium. As per some glimpses of the pitch condition, it is expected that there will be classy seam movement with bounce and quick carry. Yes, it will be difficult for the batsman to survive on this pitch because the conditions are not favorable for them.
Some grass is covered on the pitch, which will help seamers to make the most out of it. A good amount of swing and seam is expected in the match and the wicketkeeper has to grab the ball at a good height.
The West Indies bowling attack is packed and they will not make any changes in their bowling. They might add a batting option to their playing eleven, which can give them some support.
However, the batting options are good with South Africa but still, we may see a change in their eleven. Furthermore, they have great bowling options, and we may expect a single change because of the absence of Anrich Nortje.
SA vs WI 2nd Test Favourites
South Africa are the favourites, they will take advantage of home conditions and will try to dominate again. The pace attack of South Africa is tremendous and with extra bounce on Wanderers can be horrifying for the batsman.
Let’s see how West Indies is making a comeback and trying to level the series by 1-1. South Africa will not take this match casually because they would like to clinch the series by 2-0.
