India travels to South Africa for a bilateral series and the tour kicks-off with the first of the three-match Test series. The series opener takes pace at the SuperSport Park Cricket Ground in Centurion. The series will be played behind the closed doors in view of spread of Omicron COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, ahead of the IND vs SA first Test we take a look at the head-to-head record, live streaming, key players and mini battles of the match. Virat Kohli Pumped up for Boxing Day Test Match Against South Africa, Here’s Indian Test Captain’s Latest Tweet.

India come into the series having defeated New Zealand 1-0 at home. South Africa, on the other hand, play for the first time after the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. The series is part of the ICC World Test Championship 2021-23 and South Africa will begin their campaign for the first time in the new WTC cycle.

IND vs SA Tests Head-to-Head

India and South Africa have played 39 Tests against each other. The Proteas lead the head-to-head by a slight margin of 15 wins against India’s 14. Ten Tests between these two sides have ended in draws. However, when it comes to Tests in South Africa, India has a poor record; winning just three out of 20 with seven draws. KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal Recall Journey of Playing Domestic Cricket Together to Representing India Ahead of 1st Test Against South Africa (Watch Video).

IND vs SA 1st Test 2021 Key Players

Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah remain the key players from team India camp while for hosts Rassie van de Dussen and Kagiso Rabada hold the key to success.

IND vs SA 1st Test 2021 Mini Battles

South African pacer Duanne Olivier had his thoughts about bowling to Virat Kohli, so how he takes on India’s best batsman will be interesting to watch. Other battle one could witness will be between Bumrah and South African opening batsman and captain Dean Elgar.

IND vs SA 1st Test Venue and Match Timing

SuperSport Park Cricket Stadium will host the series opener between India and South Africa from December 26 onwards. The IND vs SA 1st Test starts at 01:30 PM IST and 10:00 AM Local Time.

IND vs SA 1st Test Live Telecast and Live Streaming Online

Live telecast for India vs South Africa 1st Test match will be available on Star Sports channels as Star Network holds the broadcast rights for India tour of South Africa 2021-22. The game will be telecast live on various Star Sports channels in multiple languages including Tamil, Telugu and Kannada apart from English and Hindi. Disney+Hotstar will also be live streaming the game online for fans in India. Fans can watch the live streaming of IND vs SA 1st Test on Hotstar app as well as on the official website.

IND vs SA 1st Test 2021 Likely Playing XIs

India Likely Playing 11: KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (C), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (WK), Ravi Ashwin, Mohammad Shami, Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj.

South Africa Likely Playing 11: Dean Elgar (c), Aiden Markram, Keegan Petersen, Rassie van de Dussen, Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock, Wiaan Mulden, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Duanne Olivier. 

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 25, 2021 04:55 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).