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India must focus on increasing the bench strength of their pace attack in 2024 as the Centurion Test exposed chinks in that department, reckons former pacer Irfan Pathan. Mohammed Shami's absence was felt badly in the heavy loss to South Africa in the opening Test of the two-match series in the Rainbow Nation last week.
Despite being critical of him in the past, former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad was full of praise for KL Rahul, saying that the wicketkeeper-batter enjoyed playing ODI cricket in 2023. Rahul finished 2023 with 1203 runs in 30 matches across all formats for India, and finished the year on a high with a century in the first innings of the 1st Test against South Africa in Centurion. The batter also played a crucial role in India's journey to the World Test Championship and World Cup finals. Prasad, who has been critical of Rahul in the past for his inconsistent performances, feels the player should also stake his authority when it comes to Test cricket.
Legendary Indian cricket team batter Krishnamachari Srikkanth criticised the Rohit Sharma-led side and said that the Test team has been 'overrated' in the recent times. During a recent interaction, Srikkanth pointed out that India were outstanding when Virat Kohli was skipper but since then, the form has deteriorated drastically. Under Kohli, India won Test series in Australia and England. However, since then, they have lost in South Africa and England as well as in the World Test Championship (WTC) Final.
Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma is well known for his witty quips during press conference and ahead of the second Test match against South Africa, he came up with another gem of a comment with regards to batting positions. During the pre-match press conference on Tuesday, Rohit was asked about Shubman Gill batting at No. 3 instead of his preferred opening position. Rohit was quick to state that he believes that it is an individual decision on how batters decide to look at certain positions in the batting order and even quipped that since he started opening, the other positions seem wrong to him.
All eyes will be on the Indian cricket team's performance as it takes on South Africa in the second Test, starting in Cape Town on Wednesday. India lost the first Test by an innings and 32 runs. The Rohit Sharma-led team needs a win in order to draw the series. India have had a poor record in South Africa and have never won a Test at the venue. India have also fallen to no. 6 position in the World Test Championship points table. A win will boost their chances of qualifying for the WTC final.
The first Test of 2024 for the Indian cricket team is a do-or-die one. Against South Africa in Cape Town, the Rohit Sharma-led side needs a win to draw the series. after an embarrassing loss by an innings and 32 runs, the Indian cricket team has its task cut out for the second Test. There will be much intrigue surrounding India's playing XI too. Many experts have predicted that there will be two changes in the XI. Ravichandran Ashwin may make way for Ravindra Jadeja while Mukesh Kumar may replace Prasidh Krishna.
Rohit Sharma, the leader, will need to channelise the champion tactician that resides in him as India look to restore parity against South Africa and remain consequential in the World Championship points table when the second Test starts here on Wednesday. India are sixth in the nine-team table with 14 points (38.89 PCT) and a defeat will dent their standing further. Ravindra Jadeja, India's "Most Valuable Player" across formats, will come back to add the requisite middle-order batting balance and steady overs with the old Kookaburra but it will be the skipper's choice of third and fourth speed merchants that will define the embattled team's response.
Legendary South Africa cricket team fast bowler Allan Donald decoded the reason behind Sachin Tendulkar's tremendous form against the Proteas. While India batters have historically struggled in South Africa, Sachin has scored four Test centuries in five tours to the nation. “It's not an easy place to combat. We see that daily in South Africa, the ball does nip around more than it does in Australia or England. If your footwork isn't 100 percent then you are in trouble,” Donald told PTI in an exclusive interview.