West Indies Cricket Team vs South Africa National Cricket Team Match: South Africa won the toss and elected to bowl against West Indies in the first T20I of the three-match series at Boland Park, Paarl, on Tuesday, January 27, 2026. South Africa have rested key players Quinton de Kock, Tristan Stubbs and Marco Jansen for the series, while West Indies are without regular captain Shai Hope for the opening match, with Roston Chase leading the side.
South Africa captain Aiden Markram said the decision to bowl was based on feedback from players who featured in the SA20, where conditions tended to suit chasing sides later in the evening. "We will bowl first. We got a bit of knowledge from within the camp (talking about the conditions). The boys have played SA20 here recently and there was a lot of talk about it coming on slightly better under lights, so we’re taking their word for it and happy to chase. So we take the intel, we take the numbers and try to marry the two together. With the World Cup not far away, you want to take confidence into it. The broader squad has been in really good form, so you don’t want to take that for granted. Hopefully with a few wins we can tick the last couple of boxes before heading to India. Probably the big one is role clarity (talking about what is expected of the team from this series) - Ryan Rickelton will bat at three for us, which is big. He’s been opening but we’re more than happy with him at number three, and when Quinny comes back we’ll open together. Today we’ve got two spinners in Keshav and George, three frontline seamers in Corbin Bosch, Nqaba Peter and KG (Rabada), and a little bit of myself if needed," Markram said after winning the toss.
West Indies captain Roston Chase said his side would have bowled first as well, citing conditions improving under lights based on SA20 experience and data from recent matches. "We would have bowled first as well if we had won the toss, especially it gets a bit better later on under lights. That’s intel from playing SA20 and also the statistics from the analysts on games played since 2023. Obviously ahead of the World Cup we have our blueprint and the processes we want to go through, so these games are about ticking those boxes and trying to win to build confidence. Some guys have been playing a lot of cricket and some haven’t played much, so it’s about getting everyone back into the rhythm of T20 cricket. It’s a cricket match and we represent the West Indies - this is what we dream about - so once we step on the field the intensity and energy always have to be there. From the squad, the guys who are out are Shai Hope with a niggle, along with Shimron Hetmyer and Shamar Joseph," Roston Chase said.
South Africa are looking to bounce back after a 3-1 T20I series loss in India. West Indies, meanwhile, are coming off a 2-1 defeat against Afghanistan earlier this month. The series is the final preparation for both sides ahead of next month’s T20 World Cup. The live telecast of the match is available on the Star Sports Network. Fans can also stream the match live on the JioHotstar app and website.
South Africa vs West Indies 1st T20I Playing XIs
West Indies (Playing XI): Brandon King, Johnson Charles(w), Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Roston Chase(c), Romario Shepherd, Jason Holder, Matthew Forde, Akeal Hosein, Jayden Seales
South Africa (Playing XI): Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Aiden Markram(c), Ryan Rickelton(w), Dewald Brevis, Rubin Hermann, Jason Smith, George Linde, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka