South Africa (SA) lock horns with the West Indies (WI) in the first T20I in the three-match series on Tuesday, January 27. Boland Park in Paarl is going to host this encounter.
The hosts recently played a five-match T20I series against India. The Aiden Markram-led side lost 1-3, with one match getting washed out. South Africa will enter the upcoming series as favourites and will want to get a few wins under their belt, especially with the T20 World Cup being on the horizon.
Meanwhile, the West Indies
played a three-match T20I series earlier this month against Afghanistan in Dubai and lost 1-2. However, they missed star players like regular captain Shai Hope and Sherfane Rutherford, who were busy with their SA20 commitments.
SA vs WI Match Details
| Match | South Africa vs West Indies, 1st T20I, West Indies tour of South Africa 2026 |
| Date and Time (IST) | Tuesday, January 27, 9:30 PM |
| Venue | Boland Park, Paarl |
| Broadcast and Live-Streaming | JioStar Network Channels and JioHotstar (App & Website) |
Boland Park, Paarl Pitch Report
Five games were played at the Boland Park in SA20 2025-26. The average first-innings score was around 172. Four out of the five games were won by teams batting first. The surface tends to slow down a touch in the second innings but captains generally prefer to chase in the shortest format and that trend might continue on Tuesday as well.
SA vs WI Head to Head T20I Record
| Matches Played | 26 |
| Won by SA | 12 |
| Won by WI | 14 |
| Tied / No Results | 00 |
| First-ever Fixture | September 11, 2007 (SA Won) |
| Most-recent Fixture | August 27, 2024 (WI Won) |
SA vs WI Predicted Playing XIs
South Africa (SA):
Aiden Markram (C), Ryan Rickelton, Quinton de Kock (WK), Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brevis, Jason Smith, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje.
West Indies (WI):
Shai Hope (C & WK), Johnson Charles, Brandon King, Sherfane Rutherford, Rovman Powell, Romario Shepherd, Roston Chase, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Springer.
SA vs WI Probable Best Performers
Probable Best Batter: Quinton de Kock
Quinton de Kock was the highest run-getter for South Africa during the T20I series against India last month. The wicketkeeper-batter also finished with most runs in the subsequent SA20 2025-26. He will look to continue his purple patch against the West Indies.
Probable Best Bowler: Anrich Nortje
Anrich Nortje has been in excellent rhythm of late. The right-arm pacer bagged 18 wickets in 11 matches at an average of 15.78 in the SA20 2025-26. He will have a crucial role to play through the middle overs with his knack of picking up wickets.
