SA vs IND | 1st Test, Day 1: Teams make bold selection calls; Rahane retained, Marco Jansen makes debut

Indis skipper Virat Kohli has won the first toss of the series against South Africa and decided to bat first on what appeared to be a green surface at SuperSport Park in Centurion.

While he conceded that there are “lots of grass” on the surface, he said that India’s strength has been putting runs on the board away from home and also the history of the venue which suggest that the surface gets quicker from the second day played a role in choosing to bat first.

Kohli went on to divulge the team combination for the first Test and announced that Shardul Thakur will play as an all-rounder while the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj and Mohammad Shami form the trio of frontline pacers. The hosts chose to stick with Ajinkya Rahane despite the tremendous form of Hanuma Vihari and Shreyas Iyer leading up to the series.

South Africa too went with an aggressive team combination and selected a five-man bowling attack comprising of the all-rounder Wian Mulder and left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj. They also handed Test debut to left-arm pacer Marco Jansen in the first Test and the right arm pacer Duan Olivier, who was expected to come back to the South Africa side immediately after returning to their scheme of things will have to wait a little more for his opportunity.

Discover more

Dinesh Karthik shoulders batting line-up, scores ton to rescue Tamil Nadu

A hundred in a tournament final is special and Dinesh Karthik’s smile said it all when he ran that 100th run against Himachal Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021 final while playing for Tamil Nadu in Jaipur on Sunday. The right-hander had almost played the ball onto his stumps but it somehow didn’t hit the woodwork behind him. Karthik completed his century. Tamil Nadu didn’t really have a great start to the proceedings as the Himachal Pradesh bowlers did take early advantage of the conditions at Sawai Mansingh Stadium and scalped four early wickets to leave Tamil Nadu struggling at 40/4. Karthik and Baba Indrajith shouldered the innings seeing out the tough spells of Himachal pace bowlers. They were earlier shielded for a brief period by R Sai Kishore and Murugan Ashwin, two lower order batsmen who were promoted up the order. At the time of writing TN were 283/6 after 46 overs with Shahrukh Khan and Vijay Shankar in middle. The two batsmen took up the onus on themselves and stitched a stand of 202 runs for the fifth wicket before Indrajith departed for a well-compiled 80 off 71 balls. Karthik followed him in a span of four runs to get dismissed for a 103-ball 116, a knock that included seven maximums and 8 fours during the course. Both Karthik and Indrajith did a brilliant job in rebuilding the innings as they started off in a cautious manner and then took on the bowlers once they got their eye in. Karthik, though also got some help from the Himachal Pradesh fielders as he was dropped twice, first by the wicket-keeper in 33rd over and then by the fielder stationed at the short third man area while he was in 90s in the 39th over.

SA vs IND | 1st Test: Will rain play spoilsport on Day 1 in Centurion?

The first Test between India and South Africa in Centurion might see a delay as there is a 60 percent chance of rain on the opening day as per the weather forecast. But the conditions are expected to get better as the day progresses. Talking about the game, India are looking to clinch their first ever Test series win in South Africa. The Virat Kohli-led side will lock horns with the Proteas in a three-match tie which will be followed by three ODIs as well. The selectors made a tweak in the leadership group ahead of the South Africa tour as Rohit Sharma was handed over the captaincy in white-ball captaincy and was also named Virat’s deputy in Tests. Unfortunately, he will be missing the Test series due to a hamstring injury and KL Rahul has now been named as the vice-captain of the team for the three fixtures. Former India captain Rahul Dravid took up the head coach’s job after the T20 World Cup and had a decent start to his sting after India defeated New Zealand in both T20Is and Tests at home. This would be Dravid’s first overseas assignment after taking up the full time post.

The Ashes | MCG Test: England's batting struggles continue as visitors get bowled out for 185

England’s batting struggles in the Ashes series continued as they were bundled out for 185 in the first innings of the third Test in Melbourne on Sunday. The visitors had a dismal start to the proceedings and were 13/2 when Dawid Malan was joined by skipper Joe Root in the middle and the two batters tried to provide the resistance as they had been doing in the series for a while. The left-right batting duo put 48 runs for the third wicket before Malan’s resistance was dismantled by Pat Cummins after sending him back to the pavilion for 14 off 66. Later, Root also followed Malan in a short span after he was undone for 50 by Mitchell Starc. While the wickets kept tumbling at the other end, Jonny Bairstow tried to hold the fort from one end but couldn’t resist for a long time and was dismissed for a 75-ball 35 by Starc, leaving England struggling at 159/8. Later, Ollie Robinson and Jack Leach tried to chip in with small contributions before the side was bowled out. While Robinson struck 22 off 26, Leach scored 13 off 18. For Australia, it was captain Cummins and off-spinner Nathan Lyon who picked up three wickets each while Starc had a couple of dismissals to his name. Scott Boland and Cameron Green also scalped a wicket apiece during the course. The Australian side had already clinched wins in the first two Tests and lead the five-match series 2-0.

Tamil Nadu’s tactics pay off after early debacle against Himachal Pradesh

Tamil Nadu recovered after an early debacle in the Vijay Hazare Trophy Final on Sunday, 26 December. Batting first on a cold morning in Jaipur, Tamil Nadu openers were sent back to the pavilion cheaply by the Himachal pacers. With slight assistance from the deck on a nippy deck, the south India stalwarts found themselves in a precarious position down by four wickets inside the first 15 overs. However, TN played a masterclass after the dismissal of the first wicket by sending in lower order batsman R Sai Kishore in an attempt to shield the likes of Dinesh Karthik and Shahrukh Khan. The strategy seemed to be working out fairly well, but Karthik and Baba Indrajith building up a 104-run partnership, scoring at a brisk rate. At the time of writing, TN were batting at 144/4 in 34 overs having not lost a wicket since the 15th over. They still have the likes of Shahrukh Khan, Vijay Shankar and Washington Sundar in their ranks who could light up the final 15 overs to put on a big total.