The most interesting aspect of the contest is the form of batters from both sides which has been the reason of their success so far.
Pakistan needs to win all its matches and expect Australia to falter in at least two of their remaining four games.
He joins injured fast bowler Kagiso Rabada on the sidelines.
It is a mark of the standards Ben Stokes sets that his first reaction to the wonder catch that dismissed to Andile Phehlukwayo was that he had got into the wrong position.
South Africa have named three front-line spinners in their squad for the Twenty20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates and Oman but left out opening batsman Janneman Malan.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock will be available for the ODI series after his abrupt retirement from Test cricket on Thursday, while all-rounder Dwaine Pretorius earns a recall.
'As a South African team, we know we're going to have that chip on our back, or that narrative that we have to get over'
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly said the pitch for the third Test between India and South Africa was unfair on the batsmen and called for ICC's intervention into the matter.
South Africa finally got a World Cup win under their belt as they eased to a nine-wicket triumph over Afghanistan at Sophia Gardens on Saturday to keep alive their hopes of a semi-final berth.
England swept to a dominant 118-run victory as they dismissed South Africa for a paltry 83 to win the second One-Day International at Old Trafford on Friday and square the three-match series at 1-1.
South Africa won their T20 series against world champions West Indies and Ireland, and will once again be captained by Temba Bavuma in both formats.
South Africa have included off-form opening batsman Hashim Amla in their squad for the Cricket World Cup in England and Wales starting next month, but there is no place for all-rounder Chris Morris.
South Africa captain Temba Bavuma said they are mulling over whether to select a specialist batsman or all-rounder at number six for the opening one-day international against India on Wednesday.
KL Rahul will have to show drastically improved leadership acumen when he leads India against a buoyant South African side in the second ODI on Thursday.
Images from the ICC World Cup match between Afghanistan vs South Africa, in Ahmedabad, on Friday.
Rain played spoilsport as the One-Day match between India 'A' and South Africa 'A' was abandoned after 35 overs in the first innings, taking the Manish Pandey-led side to the top of points table in the quadrangular contest. The Indians were struggling for most part of the 35.2 overs bowled today after being put in to bat at the Harrup Park. Openers Mandeep Singh (29 of 51 balls) and Karun Nair (15 of 25 balls) put on 31 in eight overs before the latter was dismissed by Dwaine Pretorius.
Australia left-arm spinner Ashton Agar took a career-best 5-24, including a hat-trick, as they thrashed hosts South Africa by a massive 107 runs in the first Twenty20 International at The Wanderers in Johannesburg on Friday. After being sent in to bat, Australia amassed 196 for six in their 20 overs as South Africa struggled with their line and length and missed a number of catches in the field in what was a sloppy display. The home side were in early trouble in their reply when they lost mainstay Quinton de Kock in the first over and it became a precession after that as Agar helped bowl the hosts out for 89, a record low for South Africa.
Quinton de Kock scored a superb century as South Africa completed a clean sweep of their three-match one-day international series against India with a tense four-run victory at Newlands on Sunday.
Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji present Rediff.com's Most Valuable Player Index after 37 World Cup 2023 games.
JP Duminy will captain a South Africa Twenty20 squad with three new caps to take on India in three matches later this month, Cricket South Africa announced on Tuesday.
CSA have however not handed players a final contract
India started well as opener Shikhar Dhawan scored 79 from 84 balls and former captain Virat Kohli 51 from 63, but when they were dismissed the touring side struggled to keep up with the required run-rate and finished on 265 for eight.
Opener Fakhar Zaman smashed his second century in as many matches as Pakistan beat a much-changed South Africa by 28 runs in the third and final One-Day International, in Pretoria on Wednesday, to clinch the series 2-1.
Seamer Jasprit Bumrah took five wickets as India seized control of the third and final Test against South Africa on Thursday, going to the close of the second day with a 42-run lead on a treacherous wicket at the Wanderers.
Morne Morkel makes a return to the limited-overs format after nearly 10 months, adding experience to the pace bowling group featuring Kagiso Rabada, Wayne Parnell, Chris Morris, Dwaine Pretorius and Andile Phehlukwayo.
Rahul with 726 points maintained his position in the list led by Pakistan's Babar Azam with 885 points, followed by Colin Munro (825) of New Zealand, Glenn Maxwell (815) and Aaron Finch (782), both of Australia.
India, missing their top players, aim to punch above their weight and seal a memorable series victory against South Africa in the third and final ODI in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Sarfraz's on-field taunt in Urdu was caught by stump microphones but he denied that they were aimed at South Africa all-rounder Andile Phehlukwayo or anyone else in an apology he issued on Thursday.
According to ICC rules, a player can be banned for life for on-pitch racist abuse if he breaches the anti-racism code three times. A first offence results in four to eight suspension points.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan smashed a maiden T20 century with seven sixes as Pakistan beat South Africa by three runs
Dale Steyn has fully recovered from a shoulder injury and recently featured for the Melbourne Stars in Australia's domestic Big Bash league.
Images from Sunday's ICC World Cup match between Bangaldesh and South Africa.
Images from the World Cup opener between England and South Africa at the Oval, on Thursday.
India will be looking to round off their T20 World Cup preparation with a marked improvement in their death bowling besides providing crucial game time to its untested players in the three-match series against South Africa.
India stalwart Virat Kohli retained his second spot in the ICC men's ODI batting rankings on the back of his decent performance in the recently-concluded three-match series in South Africa.
Young pace sensation Lungi Ngidi has been rewarded for his recent performances with a place in South Africa's squad for the six-match ODI series against India starting in Durban on February 1.
Sri Lanka could manage only 137 all out in a chase that always looked beyond them to succumb to an eighth successive limited-overs loss
South African all-rounder Andile Phehlukwayo, on Wednesday, said it was important to find runs on a bowling friendly pitch like the one used for the third Test against India in Johannesburg.
Shakib Al Hasan jumped to the top of the latest MRF Tyres ICC ODI rankings for all-rounders, which doesn't feature a single Indian in the top-10 chart.
PCB Chairman, Najam Sethi is in the UK meeting with the British legal firm for advise. PCB's chief operating officer, Subhan Ahmad has also flown to London for the same purpose.
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