South Africa captain Aiden Markram won the toss and decided to bowl first against Ireland in Abu Dhabi on Sunday (September 29), in the second and final T20I of their two-match series. (Match Blog | Streaming | More Cricket News)
Playing XIs
South Africa: Ryan Rickelton (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Matthew Breetzke, Aiden Markam (capt), Tristan Stubbs, Wiaan Mulder, Patrick Kruger, Bjorn Fortuin, Nqaba Peter, Lizaad Williams, Lungi Ngidi.
Ireland: Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh (capt), Steven Smith, Josh Inglish (wk), Marnus Labuschagne, Alex Carey, Glenn Maxwell, Sean Abbott, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa.
With the Proteas winning the first game comfortably, Ireland must claim victory tonight if they are to avoid a series defeat. South Africa had eased to an eight-wicket triumph over Ireland in the first match, with Patrick Kruger and Ryan Rickelton starring for the Proteas.
Kruger's four-wicket haul saw Ireland manage 171 from their overs, with Rickleton's knock of 76 from 48 deliveries giving his side a solid foundation to build on.
South Africa entered the two-match series after suffering a 0-3 T20I whitewash to West Indies and then a historic ODI series loss to Afghanistan. For Ireland, this is their first T20 tournament after the disappointing World Cup campaign.
The series was supposed to be hosted by Ireland, but is being held in the United Arab Emirates instead due to what the Ireland board's chief executive Warren Deutrom called "infrastructure constraints". Ireland do not have a permanent home stadium and have to pay rent and bring in temporary facilities each time they play at home.
