India vs South Africa 1st Test Preview: India is now focusing on the longer version and getting ready for the South African test in the first match of the two-Test series, which starts in Centurion on December 26, which is Christmas Day. Another month has passed since the sad World Cup 2023 final, and Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are back in the running. The players are trained to move on after sadness, as head coach Rahul Dravid said at the press conference. That’s why they’re now looking forward to making it to the final of the 2025 World Test Championship.
Indian teams have only won four of the 23 Tests they’ve played in South Africa. Also, the Indians have never won a Test series at the Rainbow, but Rohit Sharma and his team have another chance to change that with the next series.
- Who: India vs. South Africa in the first Test
- When: Christmas Day, December 26
- In Centurion, at SuperSport Park
- Time to begin: 1:30 PM IST
Indian Team News
The kids will also be getting a lot of attention when big names like Rohit, Kohli, and Jasroti Burmah come back to play. Some players, like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and Shreyas Iyer, have never played a Test match in South Africa. The Proteas attack will test their skills on a fast track. With attackers like Jaiswal and Gill on the team, head coach Dravid thinks the young hitters will feel free to be themselves with the bat.
But the rates of some well-known names go down when they come to South Africa, which is something to worry about. The average for Rohit Sharma drops from 46.54 to 15.37, and the average for KL Rahul drops from 33 to 25. In South Africa, Kohli is the only player who has ruled with the bat when he was away from home. He scores more than 50.
Rahul opened the batting on the last trip to South Africa. He made a great hundred in Centurion and was named Player of the Match. After getting a fifty in the next game in Johannesburg, his form went downhill and he stopped scoring runs.
Ishan Kishan won’t be there this time, though, so Rahul will be able to keep catches and bat in the middle order. We will be interested to see if the Karnataka pitcher does much better after switching positions.
The weather report for the first two days of the Centurion Test also calls for rain, which makes the argument over bowling combinations even stronger. The third bowler spot will be shared between Mukesh Kumar and Prasidh Krishna. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj are sure to play.
Also, there are questions about whether Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin will play together or if one of them will be replaced by Shardul Thakur, an all-rounder who bowls seams well. Even though the head coach didn’t say anything in the press conference before the game, it’s likely that the guests will attack quickly.
Ruturaj Gaikwad hurt his finger and had to go home. Abhimanyu Easwaran has been put in his place in the team.
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News about the South African team
When playing at home, the Proteas have been very good against India. But the average of the present hitting unit might not be as good as the other team’s. Also, the star of the show is Dean Elgar, the bowler who is retiring after the last two Tests of his career. He is one of only three hitters in South Africa who has an average over 30. When it comes to Indians, half of their likely top six average more than 40. Isn’t it interesting?
As for Elgar, Temba Bavuma said, “We’ve talked about Dean, but it’s just as important to train the young guys so they feel at ease here and can play their best cricket.”
The Indians in the Rainbow Nation have lost because of the speed, though. Kagiso Rabada took 20 wickets in 3 games on the last tour, while Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi took 19 and 15, respectively. But right now, Rabada and Ngidi, two of the best pacers, are dealing with heel and hip problems.
Kyle Verreynne, who was left out of the two home Tests against West Indies earlier this year, is back in the team. David Bedingham, a former Kolpak player, is expected to make his debut.
The squads:
The South African team is led by Temba Bavuma, and the other players are David Bedingham, Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Tony de Zorzi, Dean Elgar, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Keegan Petersen, Kagiso Rabada, Tristan Stubbs, and Kyle Verreynne (wk).
Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Abhimanyu Easwaran, KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna, and KS Bharat are the players for India. Rohit Sharma is the captain.
