South Africa Tour of Sri Lanka

Teams

South Africa

Will the visitors rope in a specialist batsman to handle their batting woes in place a bowler? If yes, one of Vernon Philander or Tabraiz Shamsi could get the axe and make way for Theunis de Bruyn or Heinrich Klaasen. Philander hasn’t looked ominous due to lack of lateral movement that he relies on, but he showed excellent application with the bat and batted better than most in the team in Galle.

Leaving out Shamsi would mean they will not have a second spinner, a strict no-no in sub-continental conditions. The team could also consider looking at Shaun von Berg, who can bat a bit as well. Faf and the management have a few interesting calls to make.

Probable XI: Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, Hashim Amla, Faf du Plessis (c), Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock (w), Vernon Philander/Theunis de Bruyn/Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Dale Steyn, Tabraiz Shamsi/Shaun von Berg

Sri Lanka

Barring injuries, the hosts are unlikely to tinker with their winning combination

Probable XI: Dimuth Karunaratne, Danushka Gunathilaka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Roshen Silva, Niroshan Dickwella(w), Dilruwan Perera, Rangana Herath, Suranga Lakmal(c), Lakshan Sandakan

Sri Lanka v South Africa

10:30 AM +06
2nd Test, South Africa Tour of Sri Lanka at Colombo, Jul 20-24 2018

TOSS: South Africa
MATCH: Sri Lanka