Mullanpur will host a men’s international match for the first time in history on Thursday, December 11. India and South Africa will battle it out in the second T20I of the five-match series.

The Men in Blue took a commanding lead in the rubber, thanks to a 101-run win in Cuttack that was achieved despite the toss not being in their favor once again. It was close to a complete performance with the ball, and India will be confident of furthering their advantage.

South Africa, on the other hand, have a lot of work to do. They need to arrive at their ideal team combination in the shortest format, having tried out more than 35 players over the course of the calendar year so far. Head coach Shukri Conrad and captain Aiden Markram will know that going 2-0 down in the series could spell doom.

India’s T20I squad for the South Africa series: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (wk), Washington Sundar, Hardik Pandya.

South Africa’s T20I squad for the India series: Aiden Markram (captain), Ottneil Baartman, Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Quinton de Kock (wk), Lutho Sipamla, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, George Linde, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Tristan Stubbs.

IND vs SA 2025: Suryakumar Yadav and Co. look to sustain winning momentum

India barely had to break a sweat to win the series opener, with their bowlers delivering on all fronts. Another similar outing is expected in Mullanpur, since the Proteas have no real firepower on the bench they can bring in.

Perhaps picking Corbin Bosch and George Linde will help, but South Africa have serious questions to ask when it comes to the form of their key batters. Quinton de Kock has been inconsistent, while the likes of Donovan Ferreira and Tristan Stubbs are immensely talented but haven’t given the team a great deal of performance in recent times.

India have concerns of their own. Tilak Varma and Shivam Dube always seem to be rusty, while Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav are devoid of runs. But the hosts could benefit from a South Africa bowling attack that has limited quality in the spin department and unreliable fast bowlers.

Anything can happen in a game of T20 cricket, but India should be able to get the job done on Thursday.

Prediction: India to win the 2nd T20I vs South Africa.