South Africa would hope young batsman Dewald Brevis regains his form against a struggling United Arab Emirates in their inconsequential final Group D match of the T20 World Cup here on Wednesday.
South Africa have already reached the Super Eight with three wins, including a double Super Over thriller against Afghanistan and a comprehensive seven-wicket thrashing of New Zealand.
For the UAE, it will be a chance to test their skills against the likes of Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi, a bowling attack they don’t often face at international level as most of the Proteas players ply their trade in SA20, which clashes with their ILT20.
For South Africa, the match against the United Arab Emirates will be an extended practice game as they look to bat first and make the most of a placid track on offer at the Feroz Shah Kotla pitch.
Among the top four, Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickleton have all scored at least half-centuries in all three matches so far, but Brevis, with scores of 6, 23 and 21, hasn’t exactly shown his full potential.
Known as ‘Baby AB’ for his similarities to the great AB de Villiers, Brevis’s propensity for taking irresponsible shots between flashes of brilliance has proven to be an obstacle to making the leap to the next level.
It is precisely for this reason that the 22-year-old is still not considered on par with the likes of Shubman Gill, Harry Brook and Yashasvi Jaiswal, to name a few.
Although the UAE attack does not even have fast-paced bowlers, the winner in Kotla will give Brevis a chance to return to form before the big Super Eights game against India in Ahmedabad.
As far as changes to the playing XI are concerned, it is unlikely that the batting set-up will be altered, but Markram may simply want to rest his main fast bowlers Rabada and Ngidi, giving Anrich Nortje and teenager Kwena Maphaka a chance.
For the UAE, the onus of scoring runs will fall on former Jamia Milia Islamia student Sohaib Khan, who has already scored consecutive fifty points in the tournament and has been their batting mainstay.
Captain Muhammad Waseem and Alishan Sharafu are the other two batsmen whom the Lalchand Rajput-coached team will want to depend on to score runs.