India vs. South Africa, 4th ODI: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info and Preview

South Africa have a 1-2 series lead in their five-match one-day international series against India and will be looking to wrap up a win before the final game on Sunday.

Date: Thursday, October 21

Start time: 1:30 p.m. local time/9 a.m. BST

Venue: MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai

Live stream and TV info: Star Sports (India and Bangladesh), SuperSport (South Africa), PTV Sports (Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates)

Weather: According to AccuWeather.com, there is no chance of rain interrupting the cricket. It's going to be warm and sunny with temperatures of around 34 degrees Celsius. 

Overview

South Africa will be forced to rethink their combinations for the fourth ODI against India after JP Duminy was ruled out with an injury. Dean Elgar has been called up to replace him, but he might not be ready for the ODI in Chennai. Elgar arrived early on Wednesday morning, meaning there is precious little time to get into the swing of things.

This means South Africa will have to rethink their all-rounder role with coach Russell Domingo admitting that Duminy is a big loss.

"Under these conditions, JP fits the all-rounder role well because he is able to bowl a good number of overs. We have been grappling with that all-rounder spot and under these conditions he is the perfect guy for us, so that's a big loss for us."

South Africa have a few options, though, with Chris Morris being one of the front-runners after his performance in the T20s. Farhaan Behardien could also bowl a few more overs with South Africa possibly adding an extra spinner to the mix, but that would weaken the batting.

With Duminy’s absence throwing South Africa’s balance off kilter, India have a chance to pounce. Barring the victory in the second ODI, India have struggled for cohesion in this series and have seemingly found a way to lose despite often being in dominant positions. While South Africa’s bowlers deserve some credit for that, India have to find some pizazz as the Test series looms.

Key players

India

Rohit Sharma has been India's most consistent batsman with 218 runs, including a fifty and a century, at an average of 72.66. If Sharma can survive the new ball assault, he will be a key player to help India toward a solid total.

South Africa

Morne Morkel has had a fantastic tour and has found a way to extract some extra pace and bounce from the subcontinental tracks. He’s a key cog in South Africa’s bowling lineup and with one of the key part-timers missing, he will play an important role in subduing the run rate.

Squads

India: MS Dhoni, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Amit Mishra, Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu, Rohit Sharma, Stuart Binny, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Axar Patel, Suresh Raina, Mohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav

South Africa: AB de Villiers, Kyle Abbott, Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis, Dean Elgar, David Miller, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada, Khaya Zondo, Morne Morkel, Aaron Phangiso, Dale Steyn, Imran Tahir

All quotes obtain firsthand unless otherwise stated.