Akshay Thakur - Friday, Dec 19, 2025India vs South Africa 5th T20I Pitch Report: The grand finale of the five-match T20 International series between India and South Africa will be held at the iconic Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
India won the first T20 by 7 wickets, but South Africa bounced back in the second T20, winning by 51 runs. The Men in Blue currently lead the series 2-1. If South Africa wants to level the series at 2-2, they will have to win the fifth and final T20 match.
The fourth T20I in Lucknow was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to heavy fog, leaving the series poised at 2-1 in India's favor. This sets the stage for a high-stakes series decider, where the Indian team, led by Suryakumar Yadav, will be looking to clinch the trophy with a final victory, while the South African team, captained by Aiden Markram, has a golden opportunity to level the series and end their tour on a high note.
SA vs IND 5th T20 Match Pitch Report: The pitch at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium is excellent for batting, offering good bounce and carry, making it ideal for T20I matches like today's IND vs SA 5th match.
The pitch is hard and well-rolled, providing consistent bounce for stroke-making batsmen, especially in the early overs of the powerplay. The black soil surface offers some assistance to fast bowlers with variations like cutters, while spinners play a supporting role, and dew in night matches could benefit the chasing team.
In the 7 T20I matches played here, the average first-innings score is 183, with the team winning the toss winning all the matches – 4 batting first and 3 chasing. India remains unbeaten in 5 T20I matches at this venue, having posted high scores such as 234/4.
Due to the dew factor, teams winning the toss often choose to bowl first. Scores above 180 are expected to be competitive, which will favor India's strong pace attack and batting depth.
| Total matches: | 10 |
| Batting first won: | 6 |
| Bowling first won: | 4 |
| 1st inn avg score: | 160 |
| 2nd inn avg score: | 137 |
| Highest Total: | 234/4 |
| Lowest Total: | 66/10 |
| Highest Chased: | 166/3 |
| Lowest Defended: | 107/7 |
India (IND) Possible Playing 11: 1. Abhishek Sharma, 2. Shubman Gill, 3. Tilak Varma, 4. Suryakumar Yadav(C), 5. Shivam Dube, 6. Hardik Pandya, 7. Jitesh Sharma(WK), 8. Harshit Rana, 9. Arshdeep Singh, 10. Kuldeep Yadav, 11. Varun Chakaravarthy
South Africa (SA) Possible Playing 11: 1. Quinton de Kock(WK), 2. Reeza Hendricks, 3. Aiden Markram(C), 4. Dewald Brevis, 5. Tristan Stubbs(WK), 6. Donovan Ferreira(WK), 7. Marco Jansen, 8. Corbin Bosch, 9. Anrich Nortje, 10. Lungi Ngidi, 11. Ottneil Baartman
