South Africa Cricket has announced a 3 ODIs and 3 T20I series to be played in Sri Lanka in the month of September. These matches will be contested at the R.Premadasa Stadium in Colombo and include three ODI matches and three T20I matches. T20I matches will be played after the completion of ODIs. The first Twenty-20 International match of the series will be fought on 10th September and then the rest of the two matches will be played on 12 and 14 September.
The South Africa team is very excited to have 3 matches T20I series considering the ICC T20 World Cup right around the door. South Africa Cricket’s CEO said ”To celebrate the ICC T20 World Cup coming up, the Proteas men's squad has been confirmed for another trip.
A sub-continental tour is our greatest preparation for the World Cup, and we are thankful to Sri Lanka Cricket for hosting us during this time when calendars are so tight”.
Many experienced players who were rested in the ODIs series will come back in the T20I series. In the ICC T20I ranking, South Africa is sitting at the 5th position and Sri Lanka is at the 8th position. South Africa last played Sri Lanka in a white-ball series in 2018, winning the five-match ODI series 3-2. The one-off Twenty20 International was won by Sri Lanka.
De Kock, Miller, Ngidi, and Fortuin, who will not be available in ODI series, will make a comeback in the T20I series. These players will provide plenty of strength to the South Africa squad. In the last 5 head to head matches, both the team won the 2 matches and one game has been tied.
It's been three years since South Africa last played a bilateral series in Sri Lanka. Last series was played in 2018 in Sri Lanka, it included two Tests, five ODIs and a single T20I. The ODI series was won by South Africa by a score of 3-2, however, Sri Lanka won the lone T20I of the tournament.