<p><strong>South Africa vs India, 1st Test:</strong> The Indian cricket team is preparing for a crucial two-match Test series against the hosts, following a historic ODI series success in South Africa. The action of the longest format of the game begins on December 26 with a Boxing Day Test at SuperSport Park in Centurion, followed by the second Test at Newlands on January 3.</p>



<div class="wp-block-rank-math-toc-block" id="rank-math-toc"><nav><div><div class=""><a href="#schedule-of-the-test-series-between-india-and-south-africa">Schedule of the Test Series between India and South Africa</a><div><div class=""><a href="#where-can-we-watch-the-test-series-between-india-and-south-africa">Where can we watch the Test Series between India and South Africa?</a></div><div class=""><a href="#will-the-test-matches-be-broadcast-on-any-ott-platform">Will the test matches be broadcast on any OTT platform?</a></div><div class=""><a href="#indias-probable-playing-11-for-the-1st-test-match">India's probable playing 11 for the 1st Test match</a></div></div></div><div class=""><a href="#indias-test-squad-vs-south-africa">India's Test Squad vs South Africa</a></div><div class=""><a href="#south-africas-test-squad-vs-india">South Africa's Test Squad vs India</a></div></div></nav></div>



<p>Indian captain Rohit Sharma, along with mainstays Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah, will make their long-awaited comeback. India will be on a quest to write their name in history by winning their first Test series in South Africa. Furthermore, The Men in Blue would be hoping to maintain their top spot in the World Test Championship 2023-25 Points table with a victory in the 2-match Test Series against The Proteas.</p>



<p>Yashasvi Jaiswal had a solid test series against the Windies as an opener, and he is set to open the innings alongside Skipper Rohit Sharma against South Africa. Rohit is returning to the National Team setup after a break following the conclusion of the ODI World Cup, and his contribution with the bat, along with Yashasvi Jaiswal, will be extremely important for Team India if they want to win their first ever Test Series on South African soil.</p>



<p>Shubman Gill (The Prince of Indian Cricket) will bat at No. 3 after giving up his opening place to teammate Yashasvi Jaiswal. Gill's form has been somewhat troubling since he was not at all good in the just-finished three-match T20i series against South Africa, and he needs to perform well with the bat if India is to do well against South Africa.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://admin.icccricketschedule.com/uploads/2023/05/Indian-team-test_11zon-1024x676.jpg" alt="WTC FINAL 2023: Virat Kohli &amp; Others will leave for England on May 22nd(Tomorrow)" class="wp-image-113626" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Virat Kohli &amp; Others</figcaption></figure>



<p>King Kohli will bat at number four in the batting order. In the recently finished ODI World Cup 2023, he was in the best form of his life, overtaking the great Sachin Tendulkar in terms of most ODI centuries. He had a rest after the World Cup and will make his comeback in the Test series against the Proteas. He would be hoping to replicate his ODI form in the longest format of the game, and his contributions will be crucial for Team India against South Africa.</p>



<p>Shreyas Iyer will make his long-awaited return to the longest format of the game in the series against South Africa. He played his previous test match against Australia in this year's Border-Gavaskar Trophy before suffering a back injury that forced him to miss the IPL 2023 and the WTC 23 Final. Ajinkya Rahane replaced Iyer in the lineup, but Rahane failed to impress during the West Indies tour, and Shreyas Iyer has been in top form in recent months, and he will be eager to end 2023 on a high by helping India win the test series against South Africa.</p>



<p>KL-Rahul will play the role of wicketkeeper against the Proteas. He usually prefers opening in the longest format of the game, but this time he would be seen batting at number 6, which is going to be quite unusual for him, and it would be interesting to see how quickly he adapts to his new role in Test matches.</p>



<p>For the first match, Ravindra Jadeja is slated to be the lone spinner. The Centurion pitch is quite green and will favor the seamers, and we've seen that the Indian management likes Jadeja to be the lone spinner in seam-friendly circumstances, and that will be the case against the Proteas as well.</p>



<p>Shardul Thakur will be the team's second all-rounder. If this match were taking place in India or at a venue where the conditions were favorable for spinners, Ashwin would have started ahead of Shardul, but because the surface would aid the seam bowlers, Ravi Ashwin will have to sit on the bench.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img src="https://admin.icccricketschedule.com/uploads/2023/06/Rohit-Sharma-Jasprit-Bumrah-1.jpg" alt="Players who can replace Rohit Sharma as India's captain in ICC WTC 2023-25" class="wp-image-114836" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Image Source: Twitter</figcaption></figure>



<p>Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj are going to be sure shot starters in both the test matches against the Proteas, but the question is: who will be the 3rd seamer in the absence of the injured Mohammed Shami? Mukesh Kumar made his test debut against the Windies earlier this year and is coming off a decent ODI and T20i series against South Africa. The 30-year-old is expected to get the nod over Prasidh Krishna since Mukesh has already experienced the conditions of South Africa in the white ball series.</p>



<p>The forthcoming tests will be missed by Mohammed Shami, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Ishan Kishan. Shami and Gaikwad are out due to injuries, while Ishan Kishan has been withdrawn from the squad due to personal reasons.</p>



<p>KS Bharat and Abhimanyu Easwaran have been called up as replacements for Ruturaj and Ishan while no replacement has been announced for Shami, and Mukesh Kumar or Prasidh Krishna might play the role of the 3rd seamer in the test series against the Proteas.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="schedule-of-the-test-series-between-india-and-south-africa">Schedule of the Test Series between India and South Africa</h2>



<p>1st Test: 26/12/23, 1:30 PM (IST) Supersport Park, Centurion</p>



<p>2nd Test: 3/01/24 2:00 PM (IST) Newlands, Cape Town</p>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="where-can-we-watch-the-test-series-between-india-and-south-africa">Where can we watch the Test Series between India and South Africa?</h3>



<p>One can watch the action of the test series on the Star Sports network on TV.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="will-the-test-matches-be-broadcast-on-any-ott-platform">Will the test matches be broadcast on any OTT platform?</h3>



<p>Yes, one Can watch the live action of the test series on the application and website of Disney+Hotstar</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="indias-probable-playing-11-for-the-1st-test-match">India's probable playing 11 for the 1st Test match</h3>



<p>Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Mukesh Kumar / Prasidh Krishna.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="indias-test-squad-vs-south-africa">India's Test Squad vs South Africa</h2>



<p>Rohit Sharma (C), Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, Abhimanyu Easwaran, KL Rahul (WK), KS Bharat (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="south-africas-test-squad-vs-india">South Africa's Test Squad vs India</h2>



<p>Temba Bavuma (C), Aiden Markram, Dean Elgar, David Bedingham, Nandre Burger, Tony de Zorzi, Keegan Petersen, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Wiaan Mulder, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Gerald Coetzee.</p>



<p><strong><mark style="background-color:#fcb900" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color">Read:</mark></strong> <a href="https://www.icccricketschedule.com/ind-vs-sa-rohit-sharmas-biggest-mental-challenge-during-india-vs-south-africa-1st-test-reveals-sunil-gavaskar/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.icccricketschedule.com/ind-vs-sa-rohit-sharmas-biggest-mental-challenge-during-india-vs-south-africa-1st-test-reveals-sunil-gavaskar/">Rohit Sharma?s biggest mental challenge during India vs South Africa 1st Test reveals Sunil Gavaskar</a></p>



<p><strong><mark class="has-inline-color has-vivid-green-cyan-color">For more details,</mark></strong> head to the<strong><mark class="has-inline-color has-vivid-green-cyan-color">?<a href="https://www.icc-cricket.com/homepage" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ICC?s?</a>official website.</mark></strong></p>

South Africa vs India, 1st Test: Team India strategies against RSA, Playing 11 and Live Streaming Details

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<p><strong>India vs South Africa:</strong> India and South Africa are locking horns against each other in the first test match, which is being held at the Super-Sport Park in Centurion. South Africa won the toss and asked the Indian team to bat first. Prasidh Krishna makes his test debut in the first test against the Proteas. The seamer was really good in the 4-day match against South Africa-A, finishing with figures of 5-43.</p>



<p>The visitors have chosen Ravi Ashwin as the lone spinner for the first game, and at the toss, Captain Rohit Sharma revealed why Ravindra Jadeja is not playing in this match. "Ashwin is playing instead of Jadeja. He had a back-neck spasm in the morning, so Jaddu was not available for selection. Prasidh is making his test debut today. Bumrah, Shardul, and Siraj are the 3 seamers alongside Prasidh?.</p>



<p>Proteas Skipper Temba Bavuma, who is making his comeback to the team after the loss in the semi-finals of the ODI World Cup against Australia, won the toss and chose to field in order to take advantage of the overcast conditions and the moisture that is in the wicket. Seamer Nandre Burger and batsman David Bedingham are making their test debuts against India in the first test match.</p>



<p>South Africa is the only country where The Men in Blue have failed to win a single test series, and it is a big opportunity for Rohit Sharma and his men to rewrite history by becoming the first Indian side to win a test series against the Proteas on South African soil.</p>



<p>India have won 1 game and drawn 1 against the Windies so far in the current 2023?25 WTC cycle, and the Men in Blue are currently at the top of the WTC table with a points percentage of 66.67%. A win against the Proteas will help India solidify their number one position in the points table.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Playing 11 of both teams for the 1st Test Match</h2>



<p><strong>India:</strong> Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, and Mohammed Siraj.</p>



<p><strong>South Africa:</strong> Temba Bavuma (C), Aiden Markram, Dean Elgar, Tony De Zorzi, Keegan Petersen, David Bedingham, Kyle Verreynne (WK), Gerald Coetzee, Marco Jansen, Nandre Burger and Kagiso Rabada.</p>



<p>Read: <a href="https://www.icccricketschedule.com/aus-vs-pak-day-2-weather-forecast-and-pitch-report-of-melbourne-cricket-ground-melbourne-australia-vs-pakistan-2nd-test/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.icccricketschedule.com/aus-vs-pak-day-2-weather-forecast-and-pitch-report-of-melbourne-cricket-ground-melbourne-australia-vs-pakistan-2nd-test/">AUS vs PAK Day 2 Weather Forecast and Pitch Report of Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne</a></p>



<p><strong>Visit the?<a href="https://www.icc-cricket.com/homepage" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ICC OFFICIAL WEBSITE</a>?for more recent updates.</strong></p>

India vs South Africa: Why is Ravindra Jadeja not playing in the first Test match against South Africa?

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The Board of Control for Cricket in India finally announced the contract list for the next season.

Full list of players added and terminated from BCCI's central contract list

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Struggling KKR (3 wins in 7 matches) face table-toppers GT (5 wins in 7 matches) at Eden Gardens. KKR's batting has been inconsistent, with Rahane, de Kock and others failing to chase even modest totals, while their bowlers have performed well. GT, led by in-form Shubman Gill, have been dominant with strong contributions from Buttler, Sudarshan and their bowling attack. The Eden Gardens pitch, initially a point of controversy, is now more spin-friendly but should still allow competitive scores around 180-190. GT have won 2 of their 4 past meetings against KKR.

KKR vs GT IPL 2025: Will the Eden Gardens pitch support the batters or bowlers? Check the pitch report here

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Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan, who were terminated last year, are back on the list following impressive performances. 

BCCI releases annual contract list for 2025 season, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan return

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The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) has reportedly asked the BCCI to ban commentators Simon Doull and Harsha Bhogle from Eden Gardens after they criticized the pitch curator for not favoring KKR. The CAB defended the curator, stating he followed rules against franchise interference. As a result, Doull and Bhogle will miss KKR’s next match, with the BCCI’s decision pending. Eden Gardens is still set to host the IPL 2025 final.

Harsha Bhogle & Simon Doull banned by CAB from commentating at the Eden Gardens, Controversy in IPL

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GT vs KKR Match Prediction: The Gujarat Titans will be heading to the city of joy as Shubman Gill leads them to his first home in the IPL, the den of the Knight Riders. 

ind vs rsa 1st test match