India and South Africa are all set to square up against each other in a three-match Test series, starting from Boxing Day. The first Test is scheduled to be played from 26^th December to 30^th December 2021.

Ahead of the first Test of the series, India were dealt with a massive blow. Rohit Sharma, who has recently been appointed as the vice-captain in Test Cricket, has been ruled out of the series. He has done the bulk of scoring for India in Tests this year. Nobody, in fact, has scored more runs than Rohit Sharma for India in Test Cricket in 2021.

In his absence, KL Rahul should open the innings alongside Mayank Agarwal. India’s batting looks a bit lean, given the fact that Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara haven’t been playing to their potential of late. Add to that, Ajinkya Rahane has been undergoing a lean patch. Whether he makes it into the playing XI or not remains to be seen. Shreyas Iyer and Hanuma Vihari both have been included in the squad and both are in good form. Both too are in contention of making the playing XI.

The bowling attack is much similar to the one that was played in 2018. Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah are sure-shot starters. Ishant Sharma hasn’t looked too great of late and there could be a chance M Siraj gets the nod ahead of him for the first Test.

South Africa, on the other hand, will be playing a Test series after a long time. They last played a Test series against West Indies, which they won by a 2-0 margin. South Africa have never lost a home Test series against India and they would draw a lot of confidence from that record heading into the series.

Having said that, it won’t be wrong to say that the current South African team isn’t as good as the previous ones. Lack of experience is something to ponder. Quinton de Kock might not be available for two out of three due to the birth of his first child.

Dean Elgar is a new captain and it will be interesting to see how he leads the team against a strong Indian team. Dean Elgar is the most experience batter in the squad, having played 69 Tests so far. The likes of Rassie van der Dussen (10), Aiden Markram (26), and Temba Bavuma (44) too have a decent experience if not a lot.

To add misery, Anirch Norjte has been ruled out of the Test series due to a hip injury. Thus, the onus will be on the likes of Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, and Duanne Olivier to pick the bulk of the wickets.

IND vs SA Prediction- Who Will Win the Match Between India vs South Africa, India vs South Africa 2021, 1st Test

Teams Head to Head Records: Tests

Stats	Matches	IND Win	SA Won	A
Overall	39	14	15	1
At Super Sport Park	2	0	2	–
In the last 5 matches	5	4	1	–

Toss Prediction for the 1st Test of the Test Series

The team winning the toss is likely to bat first.

India:

Batting

Players	Matches	Runs	Average
Mayank Agarwal	16	1294	47.9
KL Rahul	40	2321	35.2
Virat Kohli	97	7801	50.6
Rishabh Pant	25	1549	39.7
Ajinkya Rahane	79	4795	39.3
Cheteshwar Pujara	92	6589	44.8

Who will score the most runs for India in the match: KL Rahul or Virat Kohli

Bowling

Players	Matches	Wickets	Average
Jasprit Bumrah	24	101	22.8
Ravichandran Ashwin	81	427	24.1
Mohammed Shami	54	195	27.57
M Siraj	10	33	27.7
Ishant Sharma	105	311	32.4
Shardul Thakur	4	14	22.7

Who will pick the most wickets for India in the match: Jasprit Bumrah or M Shami

South Africa:

Batting

Players	Matches	Runs	Average
Dean Elgar	69	4347	39.5
Aiden Markram	26	1824	39.6
Rassie van der Dussen	10	610	38.1
Quinton de Kock	53	3245	39.1
Temba Bavuma	44	2097	32.3
K Petersen	2	44	14.7

Who will score the most runs for South Africa in the match: Dean Elgar or Quinton de Kock

Bowling

Players	Matches	Wickets	Average
Kagiso Rabada	47	213	22.8
Lungi Ngidi	10	32	23.3
Keshav Maharaj	36	129	32.3
Duanne Olivier	10	48	19.2
Wiaan Mulder	6	14	21.1