India Tour of South Africa

Third Test: SA vs. IND

Preview

After a defeat in the first test, the Proteas have responded magnificently and brought the series into level terms by beating India in the second test of the series. However, Indian Captain Virat Kohli missed the last test because of back spasm will now be returning to the squad and with him in charge, team India will be a different team altogether. On the other hand, Dean Elgar and his boys will be very confident after their recent success at Johannesburg.

The reason behind their confidence is very important to understand. South Africa used to be one of the dominant forces when it came to test cricket. Heavyweight nations used to find it really difficult to beat the Proteas at home but things have changed massively in the recent past. South Africa is no more a threat and fans think them to be a mediocre nation when it comes to test cricket. Thus, to change that, they had to do something and what better than beating India in test cricket? As said, the series is poised at 1-1 and if South Africa manages to win this one, they will be winning the test series – something that the heavyweight countries like England and Australia failed to do. Thus, after beating India in the second match, they of course will be confident that they can get the things done in Cape Town and win this monumental series and most importantly send a message to all the other teams and fans that they are here to make a statement. The journey to the top for the Proteas begins here!

If the Proteas bring the fight, then they need to understand that the King of Indian Cricket is back and he will not be giving any space for them to capitalize. Virat is indeed not in form as he hasn’t scored a century in last 25 test innings and it needs to change now for the sake of Indian Cricket. The point however isn’t that. Many fail to understand this but his presence in the field matters as well. The energy and the passion that Kohli brings to the field is immense and most importantly he knows how to rotate his bowlers and how to bring the best out of them. By now we all know that India has been winning test matches because of the bowlers and without Kohli in charge in the last match, the bowlers lacked confidence and failed to do their job. His comeback will certainly add new dynamics in the match. However, ace pacer Mohammed Siraj won’t be part of the match after he suffered an injury in the last match. Veteran pacer Ishant Sharma will be making his return to the squad.

The match is once again going to be a very crucial one for Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane. Both these players have scored a half century in the last match which may give them a lifeline but they need to score runs for the winning cause. After a great start, they should have made it count and score more runs to put Proteas under pressure but they failed to do so. If they fail to perform in this match, expect them to rule out of the team dynamics. Even though no one can question his selection, Rishabh Pant needs to get some runs as well. He is giving away his wicket pretty cheaply and that needs to change immediately for the sake of Indian Cricket.

Match Details

Match: SA vs. IND, 3rd Test

Date: Tuesday-Saturday, January 11-15, 2022 

Time: 2:00 pm

Venue: Newlands, Cape Town.

Pitch Report

Newlands is one of the best places to play test cricket. The ground doesn’t favour anyone as such and thus expect to have a cracking contest. The team who wins the toss should elect to bat first and put on runs to keep the opponent in some kind of pressure unless someone decides to take advantage of spinners on 4th and 5th day.

SA vs IND Probable XIs

SA:  Dean Elgar (c), Aiden Markram, Keegan Petersen, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma, Kyle Verreynne (WK), Marco Jensen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Duanne Olivier, Lungi Ngidi.

IND: KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (WK), R Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma.

Match Prediction

Like said, expect a cracking contest. It can be a batting paradise and team India will be a bit ahead of South Africa. The bowlers will play a huge role for India to win the test while the Proteas batters need to show the same grit and determination that they showed in the Johannesburg test. Even after all that, Team India should get the win to win the series.

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