South Africa unbeaten in Tests under Temba Bavuma’s captaincy:First match against India from tomorrow; Test returns to Kolkata after 6 years

The first match of the 2-Test series between India and South Africa will be played from Friday, November 14, at Eden Gardens Stadium in Kolkata. The match will start at 9:30 AM, with the toss at 9 AM. South Africa, under the captaincy of Temba Bavuma, have not lost a single Test so far, but this time the team will face the challenge of India. South Africa have not won a single Test in India for the last 15 years. The team’s last victory here was in 2010. After that, 8 matches were played in India, in which the home team won 7, while one was drawn. Meanwhile, as captain, Bavuma has won 9 out of 10 Test matches and drawn one. First Test in Kolkata since 2019 Eden Gardens Stadium will host a Test after 6 years. The last time a Test was played here was in November 2019, a Pink Ball Day-Night Test between India and Bangladesh, in which India registered a one-sided victory. So far, 42 Tests have been played in Kolkata. The team batting first won 12 matches, and the team bowling first won 10 matches. 20 matches were drawn. 3 Tests have been played here between India and South Africa. India won 2 matches, and South Africa won 1 match. India won the last two matches. 2-win difference in Head-to-Head So far, intense contests have been witnessed in Test cricket between India and South Africa. 44 Test matches have been played between the two teams, in which India registered victories in 16 matches and South Africa in 18 matches, while 10 matches were drawn. Meanwhile, India played 19 Tests against South Africa at home, winning 11 and losing 5. 3 matches were drawn. The last Test series between the two teams was played in South Africa in 2023-24, which ended in a 1-1 draw. Gill is India’s Top Scorer Indian captain Shubman Gill is the team’s top run-scorer in 2025, having scored 979 runs with 5 centuries in 8 matches. He can complete his 1000 Test runs this year in the Kolkata Test. Meanwhile, Mohammed Siraj is the team’s top bowler with 37 wickets this year. Maharaj is South Africa’s Top Wicket-Taker In 2025, Wiaan Mulder has scored the most runs for South Africa. He also scored a triple century against Zimbabwe. Meanwhile, left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj remains the team’s top bowler with 19 wickets. Dhruv Jurel to get a chance in place of Reddy Nitish Reddy has been released from the Test squad. He will be seen playing ODIs for India-A against South Africa-A. Indian team’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said in a press conference on Wednesday- We are quite clear about the team combination. The way Dhruv has performed in the last six months. Especially after scoring two centuries against South Africa-A in Bengaluru last week, he will definitely play this week. Our priority is to prepare a strategy to win the match. Our position regarding Nitish has not changed. He didn’t get much opportunity to play in Australia, but considering the importance of this series and the conditions, it’s possible he might not play in the first Test this week. Toss will be done with a special coin A silver coin featuring pictures of Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela will be used during the toss in the Kolkata Test. Bengal Cricket Association (CAB) President Sourav Ganguly has stated that this coin has been specially made for this series and will be used during the toss. On one side of it, there is a picture of Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. On the other side, “Freedom Trophy” will be written. It weighs 20 grams and will also have a layer of gold on it. Pitch and Weather Play a Crucial Role The pitch at Eden Gardens Stadium is considered balanced. It offers help to both batsmen and bowlers. Most of the help goes to batsmen but fast bowlers can get swing and seam movement in the first two days of the Test. From the third day onwards, the role of spinners is expected to increase. November weather in Kolkata is cool and slightly humid. According to media reports, Bengal Cricket Association curator Sujan Mukherjee said on Tuesday that turn can be expected from the third day here. This pitch will assist both batsmen and bowlers. Where to watch the match? The first Test between India and South Africa will be telecast live on the Star Sports Network in India. Meanwhile, live streaming will be available on the JioHotstar app and website. Additionally, you can watch LIVE coverage of the match on the Bhaskar app. Possible Playing-XI of both teams India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (Captain), Rishabh Pant, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah. South Africa: Aiden Markram, Tony de Zorzi, Tristan Stubbs, Temba Bavuma (Captain), Dewald Brevis, Kyle Verreynne (Wicketkeeper), Senuran Muthusamy, Simon Harmer, Keshav Maharaj, Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada.