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It's time for the five-match T20I series between the hosts South Africa Women and New Zealand Women after the home team clinched the ODI series by a 2-1 margin. Both teams have some quality players in their arsenal and we can expect a close game to start off the T20I series. Let's see how things pan out.

South Africa Women have a strong well-balanced unit but they were whitewashed by Pakistan Women in T20I series recently. However, they are a strong force in home conditions which is evident from their performance in the T20 World Cup held in South Africa where they finished runners-up. Laura Wolvaardt, their skipper is a class act and was in good form in ODI series with a century and a fifty to her name. Tazmin Brits along with the experienced duo of Sune Luus and Marizanne Kapp are the backbone of the batting unit while Chloe Tryon is one of the most explosive batters in women's cricket. All these are quality all-rounders and Nadine de Klerk has also grown by leaps and bounds in recent times. The pace battery with the likes of Ayabonga Khaka, Masabata Klaas along with Kapp form a formidable attack and overall, South Africa Women would be pretty confident of their chances going into this T20I series.

New Zealand Women, on the other hand, will be looking to stage a strong comeback after a loss in the ODI series. The likes of Suzie Bates, Sophie Devine and Amelia Kerr are the superstars in the batting line-up and once again, they would have to do bulk of the work against a strong South African unit. However, Bernadine Bezuidenhout is also rated highly and it is high time, she delivers on the international stage. Brooke Halliday also batted well in the ODI series and it would be interesting to see how she goes about her business in T20 format. Jess Kerr and Lea Tahuhu are the key bowlers for New Zealand along with their star all-rounders and expect New Zealand Women to put up a good performance in the T20I series. Can they draw first blood and take a lead in this five-match series? We shall find out.

Join us for the live coverage of this game at 8:30 PM IST!

8:30 PM IST, 5:00 PM Local Time: Hello and a warm welcome to our coverage of the first T20I of this 5-match series between South Africa Women up against New Zealand Women live from Buffalo Park in East London. I am Ayan Chatterjee soon to be joined by my co-commentator Anirudh Modi alongside scorer/analyst Paras Yadav as we take you through all the live updates and ball-by-ball proceedings of this crucial clash.  

Pre-Match Pitch Report: Buffalo Park is known for its true, flat wicket that offers consistent bounce and carry, favouring both batters and fast bowlers. Spinners can also come into play as the game progresses. Teams often opt to bat first, setting competitive totals for the chase due to the potential challenges spinners pose later in the game.  

9:08 PM IST, 5:38 PM Local Time: The news coming in from Buffalo Park is that the toss has been delayed due to rain. Stay tuned for further updates.  

9:17 PM IST, 5:47 PM Local Time: Live visuals show that the rain is pelting down and the covers are in the ground. The rain has set in and we are in for a longer delay.  

9:51 PM IST, 6:21 PM Local Time: Few of the players are practising on indoor nets. Some are having fun in the dressing room. But there is nothing new to report in terms of weather. It continues to rain in East London.  

10:36 PM IST, 7:06 PM Local Time: The inevitable has happened. Rain has had the final say in East London as the first T20I has been abandoned due to rain.  

10:41 PM IST, 7:11 Local Time: An unfortunate day for cricket today as the play gets abandoned without the toss. We hope the 2nd T20I gets better conditions. 

Until then, this is Anirudh Modi, signing off along with my co-commentator Ayan Chatterjee, and our scorer/analyst Paras Yadav! See you on the next one.