Ravichandran Ashwin and Shardul Thakur were selected to play in the opening Test between South Africa and India, which Ravindra Jadeja was not able to attend at Centurion.
at the opening Test of the two-match series at Centurion, the Indian cricket side faced South Africa, marking the return of veteran professionals like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah to the field. Ravindra Jadeja, an all-round player, was not included when captain Rohit Sharma revealed the starting lineup for the game. Jadeja’s name was missing from the lineup, although Ravichandran Ashwin and Shardul Thakur were both included. The left-arm spinner’s injury issue prevented him from playing in the starting eleven, it was later revealed.
“The morning before the game, Ravindra Jadeja complained of upper back spasms. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said prior to the commencement of the match that “he was not available for selection for the first Test.”
When the toss was called, India captain Rohit acknowledged that he wasn’t sure if he should bowl or bat first on the wicket. Was therefore glad to have lost the toss.
“I wasn’t sure (about bowling or batting). We have visited this location a few times, therefore we are well aware of the conditions. The bowlers will take care of the run total for us; all we have to do is score runs.
Though we recognize that batting first presents difficulties due to the grass and overhead conditions, the boys are willing to take on the task. We come here with great expectations every time. We’ve become quite close for the past two tours. In terms of our team and its composition, we feel rather secure,” he remarked.
When it came to his team’s makeup, Rohit said that Jadeja was missing because of back pain.
With four seamers and one spinner, we are having fun. Instead of Jadeja, Ashwin is playing. Ashwin, a great spinner, replaces Jaddu, who was experiencing some back pain. He remarked, “Prasidh, Shardul, Siraj, and Bumrah are the other pacers making their debuts.
South Africa Playing XI:Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, Tony de Zorzi, Temba Bavuma(c), Keegan Petersen, David Bedingham, Kyle Verreynne(w), Marco Jansen, Gerald Coetzee, Kagiso Rabada, Nandre Burger
India Playing XI:Rohit Sharma(c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
