India is preparing for a multi-format series journey to South Africa that will include two Tests, three T20Is, and as many ODIs. The World Test Championship (WTC) 2023–25 cycle includes the Test matches. During the visit, India A is expected to play an inter-squad three-day match and two four-day matches versus South Africa A.
The red-ball matches are the main attraction of the tour, and veteran Indian cricketer S. Sreesanth has ranked KL Rahul and Virat Kohli as the team’s X-factors in South Africa, ahead of captain Rohit Sharma. Sreesanth praised Kohli’s self-assured approach to the game and underlined his unwavering will to establish himself, pointing out that the star batsman for India manages his pride in an upbeat, egoless way.
“Virat Kohli enjoys always proving himself, not to others but to himself. In my opinion, he is that rare cricket player who plays with genuine pride and who uses it for good rather than selfish ends. That fills me with pride, and I have no doubt that Virat feels the same way—personal accountability for achieving success.
Thus, I’ll accompany Virat Kohli and KL Rahul,” Sreesanth stated in a Firstpost conversation.
After the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup ended, important players like Rohit, Rahul, and Kohli decided to take a sabbatical. Although Kohli and Rohit will not be playing in the white-ball portion of the South Africa tour, they will be included in the team for the Test matches. Furthermore, Suryakumar Yadav guided the Indian squad to a resounding 4-1 victory in the five-match T20I series against Australia at home, despite the absence of key players following the ODI World Cup.
Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan (wk), KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Mohd. Shami*, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna are the Indian squad for the Test Series against South Africa.