Durban [South Africa], November 8 : Ahead of the first T20I match of the series against India, South Africa skipper Aiden Markram said the Proteas always look forward to a series against the Men in Blue.
The Proteas will be facing India in a T20 game for the first time after their defeat against Men in Blue in the T20 World Cup 2024 final on June 29.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Markram said that it will be an interesting series since they will be playing in front of home fans. He added that the Proteas won't be taking the first T20I game as the rematch of the T20 World Cup 2024 final.
"It's the same countries I guess...but personnel has changed for both teams. It's always an exciting series when you play against India and especially when you play them at home. It's a series we have always looked forward to. We have not addressed anything about it being a rematch or things like that. Obviously, a lot of talk and promotions have happened through that lens, which is completely understandable," Markram said.
The series between India and South Africa begins on November 8 at Kingsmead Cricket Stadium in Durban.
St George's Park in Gqeberha will host the second T20I on November 10, with the third game scheduled for SuperSport Park in Centurion on November 13. The series concludes with the fourth T20I at Wanderers Stadium on November 15.
India's T20I Squad: Suryakumar Yadav, Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, Jitesh Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ramandeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Avesh Khan, Yash Dayal.
South Africa T20I squad: Aiden Markram (C), Ottneil Baartman, Gerald Coetzee, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Patrick Kruger, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Mihlali Mpongwana, Nqaba Peter, Ryan Rickelton, Andile Simelane, Lutho Sipamla (3rd and 4th T20Is), and Tristan Stubbs.