From Team India’s dominance in the first test to the comeback of the Proteas in the second, this India vs South Africa series has seen it all. With a gritty performance by South Africa in the 2nd test match led by their captain Dean Elgar, the series is now all set for the decider at Cape Town. However, looking at India’s recent onslaught into Australian, English, and SuperSport Park fortresses, the team will go into this contest as slight favorites. Indian teams are yet to win at this venue, but this is a team that strives to challenge history and has already altered some historical narratives.
Virat Kohli will also make his comeback after missing out on the second test match at Johannesburg. But along with the energy and the killer instinct he brings to the side, there will also be a dilemma in front of the team management. Who will make way for Virat Kohli? On the other hand, the stance on Mohammad Siraj has been cleared as it is decided he will be left out of the final match of the series due to injury. There are some tough calls to be taken by the Indian team management before the series decider at Newlands.
Pitch and Conditions
Date: 11-January-2022
Venue: Newlands, Cape Town
Weather Forecast: The weather at Cape Town during this test match will be mostly sunny and warm. On the first day, there may be some occasional rain with cloud cover up to 83%. Other than that, the temperature will be hovering around approximately 30 degrees Celcius throughout the 5 days.
Pitch Conditions: The pitch at Newlands will be better suited for the batsman. With an average first innings score of 361 in the last few domestic games here, batters from both teams would be pretty excited for this one. There will be not much assistance for the Pacers on this wicket. Although, the spinners might play a role in this series for the first time at this venue.
When, Where, and How to Watch
When: 11th to 15th January 2022
Time: 2.00 p.m. I.S.T, 10.30 a.m. Local
Where: Star Sports network and Disney + Hotstar
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India vs South Africa Head to Head Records
| Total Matches | 41 |
| India Won | 15 |
| South Africa Won | 16 |
| Draw | 10 |
| Tied | 0 |
Top 3 highest runs scorer in India vs South Africa battle
| Rank | Name | Matches | Runs | Average | Best |
| 1 | Virat Kohli | 13 | 1128 | 56.40 | 254* |
| 2 | Ajinkya Rahane | 12 | 874 | 51.41 | 127 |
| 3 | Cheteshwar Pujara | 16 | 830 | 30.74 | 153 |
Top 3 highest wicket-takers in India vs South Africa battle
| Rank | Name | Matches | Wickets | Average | Best |
| 1 | Ravichandran Ashwin | 12 | 56 | 20.76 | 7-for 66 |
| 2 | Mohammed Shami | 10 | 45 | 20.55 | 5-for 28 |
| 3 | Kagiso Rabada | 11 | 37 | 25.81 | 4-for 42 |
Previous performances of both teams:
Team South Africa’s performance in the last three test matches
| Against | Date | Venue | Result | Team score | Opponent score | Highest Runs | Highest Wickets |
| India | 3-Jan-2022 | Johannesburg | Win | 229/10 & 243/3 | 202/10 & 266/10 | Dean Elgar 28 & 96* | Shardul Thakur 7/61 & 1/47 |
| India | 26-Dec-2021 | Centurion | Lose | 197/10 & 191/10 | 327/10 & 174/10 | K.l. Rahul- 127 & 23 | Mohammed Shami- 5/44 & 3/63 |
| West Indies | 18-June-2021 | Gros Islet | Win | 298/10 & 174/10 | 149/10 & 165/10 | Quinton de Kock- 96 & 0 | Keshav Maharaj- 2/47 and 5/36 |
Team India’s performance in the last three test matches
| Against | Date | Venue | Result | Team score | Opponent score | Highest Runs | Highest Wickets |
| South Africa | 3-Jan-2022 | Johannesburg | Lose | 202/10 & 266/10 | 229/10 & 243/3 | Dean Elgar 28 & 96* | Shardul Thakur 7/61 & 1/47 |
| South Africa | 26-Dec-2021 | Centurion | Win | 327/10 & 174/10 | 197/10 & 191/10 | K.l. Rahul- 127 & 23 | Mohammed Shami- 5/44 & 3/63 |
| New Zealand | 03-Dec-2021 | Mumbai | Win | 325 & 276/7 | 62/10 & 167/10 | Mayank Agarwal- 150 & 62 | Ajaz Patel- 10/119 & 4/106 |
Previous Meeting Of India vs South Africa at Cape Town
In the previous meeting here at Newlands, Team South Africa emerged victorious as they defeated India by 72 runs. This was the first match of the 2017-18 India’s tour of South Africa. This match also marked the debut of Jasprit Bumrah in Test match cricket.
Match Summary
South Africa 1st innings – 286/10 ( de Villiers 65, Du Plessis 62, Bhuvneshwar 4/87)
India 1st innings – 209/10 ( Pandya 93, Rabada 3/34, Philander 3/33)
South Africa 2nd innings – 130/10 ( de Villiers 35, Shami 3/28, Bumrah 3/39)
India 2nd innings – 135/10 ( Ashwin 37, Kohli 28, Philander 6/42)
Fantasy Dream XI picks
Wicket-keeper: Kyle Verreynne
Batters: Virat Kohli, Dean Elgar, Mayank Agarwal, K.L. Rahul, and Temba Bavuma
All-rounders: Ravichandran Ashwin, Marco Jansen
Bowlers: Mohammed Shami, Kagiso Rabada, Shardul Thakur
Captain: Virat Kohli
Vice-captain: Marco Jansen
Injury and Other Updates
- Mohammad Siraj will miss the third test due to Hamstring injury.
- Virat Kohli will make his comeback after missing the 2nd test match due to back-spasm.
- Ishant Sharma or Umesh Yadav will replace the injured Mohammad Siraj.
Probable Playing XI
India Probable XI- K.L.Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant, R Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav/ Ishant Sharma
South Africa Probable XI- Dean Elgar (c), Aiden Markram, Keegan Petersen, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma, Kyle Verreyene, Keshav Maharaj, Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada, Duanne Olivier, Lungi Ngidi.
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Players to watch out for
It has been 15 Tests since Kohli last recorded a Test hundred, and while he still has an overall Test average of over 50, he has recorded only 26.08 since then. However, for the first time in his career, more emphasis would be given to his captaincy. Although the stand-in captain K.L Rahul did not do badly in the previous match, the fire, and that killer instinct. In this series, the role of Keshav Maharaj has just been of a tail-ender or a nightwatchman with the bat. So far Maharaj has bowled just 20 overs in the whole series. But the Newlands wicket has a possibility of getting some turn as the match progresses. Therefore it will be interesting to see if we can see a Maharaj vs Ashwin battle.
Additional Information
Broadcast Details: Starting on 11th – 15th January 2022, From 2.00 p.m. I.S.T on Live on Star Sports network and Disney+Hotstar
Umpires: Adrian Holdstock & Marais Erasmus
TV Umpire: Allahudien Palekar
Reserve Umpire: Bongani Jele
Match Referee: Andy Pycroft
Some Interesting stats
- Despite playing five Tests at Newlands, India has yet to win a match there, with three defeats and two draws.
- Rabada will be playing in his 50th Test match. With 226 Test wickets to his name, he ranks seventh in South Africa’s all-time list, 65 behind Jacques Kallis. He has also taken 35 wickets in just 6 matches at this venue.
- Dean Elgar enjoys a good record here at Newlands. In 10 matches played here, he has scored 708 runs with an average of 50.57.
Records that can be broken in this match
- Kohli needs 146 runs to become the sixth Indian batter to reach 8000 Test runs. He has so far scored 7854 runs in 98 matches at an average of 50.30.
- Ajinkya Rahane is 79 runs behind the 5000-run mark in test cricket. So far he has score 4921 runs in 81 matches at an average of 39.
- Ravichandran Ashwin can become the second-highest wicket-taker for India in Tests. Currently, Ashwin has 430 International Test wickets. Just 4 wickets behind Kapil Dev’s 434 wickets.
- India has never won a series in South Africa. By winning this match, team Indian can also become the only Asian country to win series in all SENA countries.
Conclusion – Writer’s Opinion
The year has been a roller-coaster ride for the underdogs so far as we have seen in India vs South Africa 2nd Test and the Bangladesh vs New Zealand 1st Test as well. The Proteas pulled off a brilliant 4th innings chase riding on the back of their ever-resilient captain and arguably one of the best test openers going around. Going into the third and final match of the series, once again it will be a battle of India’s batting vs South African pace attack. This makes the third test an absolute humdinger, with the Indians looking to avenge the defeat of the second match and finally win a test series in the rainbow nation.
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