IND vs SA 3rd T20I: Suryakumar Yadav wins toss, Team India opt to bowl

Suryakumar Yadav (Pic: X/@BCCI)

In the third T20I match against South Africa, Team India skipper Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and elected to bowl first at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamshala.

After winning the toss, the hosts' skipper Suryakumar stated that bowling first would be a good decision. The side has also made two changes, where Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah have made way for Harshit Rana and Kuldeep Yadav.

Meanwhile, Varun Chakaravarthy is just one wicket shy of completing 50 scalps in the format, whereas Hardik Pandya needs to dismiss one batsman to complete 100 wickets for the "Men in Blue" in the shortest format of the game. If Pandya manages to claim that one wicket, he will then become the third Indian player to achieve the feat.

"We'll bowl first, the wicket looks good, and there's a bit of dew. It might become heavier later, so we think bowling first is the best approach. We're happy to be here, the crowd is fantastic, and we want to entertain them. Every game is important, and we need to be switched on for all three hours. We're making two forced changes, with Harshit Rana and Kuldeep Yadav coming in for Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah," said the Indian Captain.

On the other hand, Aiden Markram, the South African captain, said, "It's nice to be here, and it's a bit chilly, quite different from Joburg. We're looking forward to a great evening of cricket. We weren't up to the mark in the first game, so it's great to see the response from the team. We need to back it up again tonight and play consistently. We're making three changes today and are excited to see how the team performs".

Tristan Stubbs, Corbin Bosch, and Anrich Nortje have come in place of David Miller, George Linde, and Lutho Sipamla.

IND vs SA 3rd T20I: Confirmed Playing XI

India: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (C), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy.

South Africa: Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram (C), Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Ottneil Baartman.