IND vs SA 1st Test: No Ashwin, a new debut and KL Rahul’s new role confirmed

IND vs SA 1st Test: Predicted XI

Several of India’s top players will be playing their first international match since the heartbreaking 2023 World Cup final. They will be facing South Africa in their two-match Test cricket series beginning on Tuesday. The team is looking to win a Test series for India in South Africa for the first time, captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid also stated they have moved past the disappointment of the final.

KL Rahul will now be batting in the middle order

KL Rahul may have led India in one of the three Tests they played on their last tour to South Africa and scored a ton as well, but he will, however, be wearing the wicketkeeper’s gloves in addition to being moved out of his usual opening position for this series. As he has been scoring runs in ODI cricket lately, captain Rohit announced that he will bat in the middle order.

Yashasvi Jaiswal’s new addition

With an opportunity to solidify his position as Rohit’s opening partner Jaiswal will look forward to take full advantage. He has played two Tests and amassed a massive 266 runs. Shubman Gill, who has had an incredible year in one-day international cricket, would like to make up for his inconsistent performance in Test matches. As usual, Kohli will start at number four, followed probably by Shreyas Iyer and Rahul at number six.

When the going gets rough, India has tended to favour spin-bowling all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja over spin-loving all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin, and this is probably going to be the case in Centurion as well. As the fast-bowling all-rounder, Shardul Thakur will be followed by Bumrah, Siraj, and Prasidh.

India’s Predicted XI for the first Test vs South Africa

Openers: Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal,

Top and middle-order: Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer

Wicketkeeper: KL Rahul (WK)

All-rounders: Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur

Pacers: Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna