Australia will be up against South Africa in the first of the three-match T20I series. The AUS vs SA Match Preview provides today’s match details for the first T20I of the South Africa tour of Australia 2025.

AUS vs SA Match Preview- 1st T20I, South Africa Tour of Australia 2025:

Date and Venue:

The AUS vs SA match will be played on August 10 at Marrara Cricket Ground, Darwin. The game will start at 2:45 PM IST.

Squads:

Australia

Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matt Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa

SHORTS

South Africa

Aiden Markram (c), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, George Linde, Kwena Maphaka, Senuran Muthusamy, Lungi Ngidi, Nqaba Peter, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Prenelan Subrayen, Rassie van der Dussen

AUS vs SA Key battles:

Mitchell Marsh vs Kagiso Rabada

The Australian captain would like to start the home season on the right note in the first of the three T20Is against South Africa.

Marsh would want to contribute with the bat as he hasn’t been able to convert the starts that he has got in the last few matches into big scores.

Marsh will be up against Kagiso Rabada, who is making a comeback in the team after being rested for South Africa’s last international assignment in Zimbabwe.

Tim David vs Nandre Burger

Tim David, who was in magnificent big-hitting form in the limited chances he got against the West Indies, would hope to continue that form in the three-match T20I series against South Africa at home.

David will face the challenge of young South African pacer Nandre Burger, who will look at this series as an opportunity to solidify his spot in South Africa’s T20I setup.

Dewald Brevis vs Adam Zampa

Dewald Brevis, who has somewhat become a crucial part of South Africa’s setup in T20I cricket courtesy of his performances, would like to put on a strong show in the first match against Australia.

Brevis will go head-to-head against Adam Zampa, who is the mainstay of Australia in white ball cricket.

Aiden Markram vs Josh Hazlewood

Aiden Markram, South Africa’s regular T20I captain, is back after being rested for the series in Zimbabwe and would wish to get things right from the first ball both as a captain and a batter.

Markram will have to tackle the bowling of Josh Hazlewood, who is also making a comeback into the T20I team after a while.

AUS vs SA Key Players:

AUS– Mitchell Marsh, Tim David, Mitch Owen, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood

SA– Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, Nandre Burger, Kagiso Rabada

AUS vs SA Weather Report:

There is no chance of rain during the game in Darwin with a maximum temperature of 31°C and a minimum of 18°C.

Conclusion

Australia would like to build on the recent success they have achieved in T20I cricket with their first-ever 5-0 series win against any team in this format of the game.

As far as South Africa is concerned, the visitors would want to improve their record against Australia in T20Is courtesy of a win in the upcoming game and start the series on a positive note in the process.

Ashok Namboodiri

Much has been written about the famous win that India pulled off in the last Test of the recent Andersen-Tendulkar series. Many more write-ups are still in the making. And for very good reason.

The cricket eco-system has been transformed with the advent of data analytics, high flying strategies and scientific management of workload. The one thing that remains intact though are the moments of raw, unfiltered courage when a cricketer turns up bloodied and bruised to do duty in an arm sling, bone cast or sometimes the jaw strapped in a bandage. The recent India-England series saw two such moments — one of course was Chris Woakes walking out to join Gus Atkinson at the end of the innings. Ironically, it was in the Manchester Test before that when Rishabh Pant walked out with an injured toe to score a gritty 54 off 75 balls; an injury inflicted by the same Woakes.

Woakes, in visible discomfort, wasn’t going to let a sling deny him the chance to stand with his team. It didn’t matter that his presence didn’t change the result. What mattered was that it changed the mood — from resignation to resistance.

An iconic moment in my head was in 1984 when Malcom Marshall came on to bowl with an injured thumb in the Test against England and went on to take nine wickets, generating the same swing and menace that emanated from fury rather than fitness. It’s an immortal reminder that some players are just wired differently.

Ravi Shastri commentating on Woakes coming out to bat talked about Colin Cowdrey coming out to bat at No. 11 in the 1974 Waca Test at Perth against a menacing Australian attack led by Jeff Thomson, arm in a sling. He was 41 then and has alredy established his credentials; he didn’t score a single run. But he made a point: honour isn’t just about glory; sometimes, it’s about presence.

Yet another image that is now part of cricketing folklore… Anil Kumble playing in the Antigua Test in 2002 had his jaw fractured by a bouncer from Merv Dillon. He came out to bowl 14 overs, jaw strapped in a white bandage and scalped the mighty Brian Lara. “At least I could get one wicket for my country,” he later said. That wasn’t just a line — it was a creed.

Australia’s T20I skipper Mitchell Marsh has confirmed that he and Travis Head will form the team’s opening partnership heading into next year’s T20 World Cup. With the tournament scheduled to be held in India and Sri Lanka, Australia is working on locking in their best XI, and the top-order slot now seems settled.

After David Warner’s retirement, the selectors have experimented with various options at the top, including Matthew Short, Jake Fraser-McGurk, and more recently Glenn Maxwell. However, it’s now clear that Marsh and Head will be given the responsibility of opening the innings.

The duo will debut as an opening pair in the T20I format during the upcoming three-match series against South Africa, part of a six-match white-ball tour hosted by Australia.

Marsh confirms Australia’s opening pair 

“For now, Heady and I will be opening,” Marsh said ahead of the series opener in Darwin on Sunday, 10 August. “We’ve played a lot of cricket together, have a strong partnership, and it makes sense to start with that.”

While this will be their first time opening together in T20Is, Head and Marsh have already shown strong chemistry at the top in ODIs, putting together 282 runs in five innings at an average of 70.50. Overall, their partnerships across formats have yielded 504 runs from 14 innings, including one century stand and three fifties.

Given their track record in 50-over cricket, the Head-Marsh pair is expected to give fruitful results.

Australia’s T20I squad vs South Africa:

Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matt Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa.