16:44 (IST)
After 36 overs,India 105/0 ( KL Rahul 39 , Mayank Agarwal 56)
FOUR! Streaky boundary for Rahul as Kohli’s debuty gets a snorter from Jansen at the start of this over, deflecting it just above the slip cordon. Four from the over. The Proteas suddenly are starting to ask the questions, and have come close to getting a breakthrough on a few occasions in the eight overs that have been bowled after lunch.
16:41 (IST)
After 35 overs,India 101/0 ( KL Rahul 35 , Mayank Agarwal 56)
Rahul steers a full delivery behind square on the off side off the third delivery, with skipper Elgar cutting the ball off near short third man. No ball called after the delivery, a very marginal call, which brings up the 100 partnership between Agarwal and Rahul. Rahul collects a single off the fifth delivery, with Rabada bowling a short one to Agarwal that is deflected in the direction of the slips, though it falls well short. Three from the over.
16:40 (IST)
The 100 partnership comes up between openers KL Rahul (34*) and Mayank Agarwal (56*), with Kagiso Rabada overstepping in the third delivery of his 12th over. IND 100/0
16:35 (IST)
After 34 overs,India 98/0 ( KL Rahul 34 , Mayank Agarwal 55)
Jansen bowls the tight length along the fifth stump line, getting one to nip back in from good length in the third delivery that goes narrowly past Rahul’s outside edge. Maiden for the debutant, his second of the day.
16:30 (IST)
After 33 overs,India 98/0 ( KL Rahul 34 , Mayank Agarwal 55)
Rabada resumes. He concedes a no ball off the second delivery with a short ball at the body of Mayank Agarwal, and the batter ducks completely as the ball goes through to de Kock. Rabada’s overstepped as well. Just one run from the over.
16:27 (IST)
After 32 overs,India 98/0 ( KL Rahul 34 , Mayank Agarwal 55)
Marco Jansen resumes. KL Rahul finds the deep midwicket boundary for a four. Five runs come off the over.
16:26 (IST)
FOUR! Rahul slots this one towardsdeep midwicket for a brilliant boundary!
16:20 (IST)
After 30 overs,India 90/0 ( KL Rahul 29 , Mayank Agarwal 53)
Marco Jansen continues. Mayank collects a boundary off the first ball to register another half-century, his sixth in Tests. Four runs off the over.
16:16 (IST)
FOUR! Timed it perfectly to deep extra cover as Mayank gets to his fifty in style!
16:11 (IST)
Time for LIVE action once again. Two slips and a gully for Rabada, who begins his over after lunch on Day 1.
15:35 (IST)
Not an ideal start for the Proteas
India go to lunch on 83/0. South Africa’s attack is looking tired, and it’s only day one. Rabada doing ok, albeit it not as quick as we’re used to. Ngidi hasn’t bowled in five months and looks rusty. Jansen has been disappointing. Could be a long afternoon. #SAvIND
— Firdose Moonda (@FirdoseM) December 26, 2021
15:32 (IST)
After 28 overs,India 83/0 ( KL Rahul 29 , Mayank Agarwal 46)
And that’s LUNCH ON DAY 1. Spin introduced right before the end of the morning session, with Keshav Maharaj replacing Lungi Ngidi, and the left-arm spinner concedes a single off the last ball. Has been India’s morning all th way, with Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul getting the visitors off to a strong start with an unbroken 83-run stand.
The Proteas, barring the nick off Mayank’s bat that was put down by de Kock behind the stumps, haven’t really been able to create too many chances in overcast conditions. Can they produce a better show with the ball on the other side of the break? Join us in 40 minutes to find out. Credit, however, to the hosts for nearly bowling 30 overs in the session despite all of them save the last one being bowled by seamers.
15:27 (IST)
After 27 overs,India 82/0 ( KL Rahul 29 , Mayank Agarwal 45)
Four byes added to the extras column at the start of the over after the ball swings away down leg, beating the diving de Kock and running away to fine leg. KG keeps it tidy for the remainder of the over. Should be one more over before lunch.
15:24 (IST)
After 26 overs,India 78/0 ( KL Rahul 29 , Mayank Agarwal 45)
FOUR! Full and going down leg, Rahul flicks this gift of a delivery from Ngidi through midwicket to take the partnership to 75. Collects a single next delivery, working the short ball through the covers. Inside edge off Mayank’s bat in the fifth delivery, the ball racing away towards deep midwicket with a misfield by Jansen in front of the boundary allowing the batter to comfortably come back for a second. Seven from the over.
15:19 (IST)
After 25 overs,India 71/0 ( KL Rahul 24 , Mayank Agarwal 43)
Kagiso Rabada returns to the attack, the South African pace spearhead having kept the Indian opening pair quiet in a tight morning spell earlier today. He’ll hope to get the breakthrough in the 15 minutes that are left in the session. Just one from the over.
15:16 (IST)
After 24 overs,India 70/0 ( KL Rahul 23 , Mayank Agarwal 43)
Just one from Ngidi’s sixth over, with Rahul moving to 23 with a single off the penultimate delivery, taking the partnership to 70.
15:12 (IST)
After 23 overs,India 69/0 ( KL Rahul 22 , Mayank Agarwal 43)
Mulder continues from the other end. FOUR! Lovely push in front of square on the off side by Rahul, beating the diving extra cover and moving into the forties in the process. Four from the over.
15:07 (IST)
After 22 overs,India 65/0 ( KL Rahul 22 , Mayank Agarwal 39)
Ngidi returns to the attack with another 30 minutes to go for lunch on the opening day. Starts off with a short ball down leg that brushes Agarwal’s thigh before running away to fine leg for four leg byes. Agarwal gets an inside edge while looking to cut the ball four deliveries later, though thankfully for the batter, it doesn’t deflect towards the stumps. Single to Agarwal off the last ball.
15:03 (IST)
After 21 overs,India 60/0 ( KL Rahul 22 , Mayank Agarwal 38)
Mulder, who has been bowling with a good rhythm in the five overs he has bowled so far today, gives away two singles as he continues to keep things tidy from his end. Partnership worth 60 at the moment.
15:00 (IST)
After 20 overs,India 58/0 ( KL Rahul 21 , Mayank Agarwal 37)
Couple of runs from Jansen’s over, both Rahul and Agarwal collecting a single each. Agarwal, meanwhile, is batting in the late 30s at the moment and might already be thinking about the milestone approaching.
14:55 (IST)
Earlier today
The 🇿🇦 South African and 🇮🇳 Indian teams observed a moment’s silence ahead of the opening Test in honour of anti-apartheid icon Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who died on Sunday. #SAvINDhttps://t.co/HJoCX1IdMk
— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) December 26, 2021
14:55 (IST)
After 19 overs,India 56/0 ( KL Rahul 20 , Mayank Agarwal 36)
FOUR! Short of length delivery from Mulder that’s going down leg, Rahul gently tickles this towards fine leg, putting it out of keeper de Kock’s reach. Four from the over.
14:53 (IST)
After 18 overs,India 52/0 ( KL Rahul 16 , Mayank Agarwal 36)
Mayank brings up the fifty partnership with back-to-back boundaries off Jansen, flicking the first one past mid-on before driving the next one through point. Jansen, however, creates a chance the very next delivery as Agarwal nicks the ball to the keeper, only for de Kock to spill the chance, handing the batter a lifeline on 36. Eight from the over.
14:48 (IST)
Fifty partnership up between openers Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul, the former bringing up the milestone with back-to-back boundaries off Marco Jansen in the 18th over. IND 52/0
14:47 (IST)
After 17 overs,India 44/0 ( KL Rahul 16 , Mayank Agarwal 28)
Agarwal tucks the ball behind square on the leg side off the third delivery of this over, collecting a single. Just one from the over.
14:43 (IST)
After 16 overs,India 43/0 ( KL Rahul 16 , Mayank Agarwal 27)
Just one off Marco Jansen’s fourth over of the day, with Agarwal driving towards point in the fourth delivery for a single.
14:39 (IST)
After 15 overs,India 42/0 ( KL Rahul 16 , Mayank Agarwal 26)
Mulder continues after the drinks break, his second over of the day going for a maiden.
14:36 (IST)
Did the Proteas miss a trick here?
Overs bowled with a red ball in a match since 1 July:
Rabada – 0
Ngidi – 0
Olivier – 153.1
Think those lines, lengths and overall lack of bite was telling enough.#SAvIND #BoxingDayTest
— Daniel Gallan (@danielgallan) December 26, 2021
14:31 (IST)
After 14 overs,India 42/0 ( KL Rahul 16 , Mayank Agarwal 26)
First maiden of the day for Jansen, who mixes up his lengths in this over, bowling a steep bouncer to Mayank in the fourth delivery after a couple of fuller one earlier. Time for the players to have a drink.
14:27 (IST)
After 13 overs,India 42/0 ( KL Rahul 16 , Mayank Agarwal 26)
All-rounder Wiaan Mulder, right-arm medium, gives Rabada a breather after a six-over spell to the pace spearhead. Rahul greets him with a boundary off his second delivery of the day, slapping a short delivery through the cover point region. Four from the over.
14:25 (IST)
After 12 overs,India 38/0 ( KL Rahul 12 , Mayank Agarwal 26)
A much better over from Jansen, with three singles coming off this one. Rahul and Agarwal, meanwhile, are fairly well set at the crease at the moment, have got their eye in, and will look to build a solid opening stand from here.
14:21 (IST)
After 11 overs,India 35/0 ( KL Rahul 10 , Mayank Agarwal 25)
Rabada manages to keep things tidy from the other end after the expensive first over from Jansen, with three coming off his sixth including a brace off the fifth ball.
14:15 (IST)
One final shot at redemption for the former vice-captain?
India have given a huge vote of confidence to Ajinkya Rahane. He will know he’s been lucky.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) December 26, 2021
14:15 (IST)
After 10 overs,India 32/0 ( KL Rahul 9 , Mayank Agarwal 23)
Left-arm seamer Marco Jansen, making his international debut today, isn’t off to the happiest of starts after replacing Ngidi in the attack. Bowls a wide full toss first up that Mayank promptly dispatches towards the cover boundary, with the Bangalorean collecting two more fours off consecutive deliveries later in the over. 12 from Jansen’s first over in international cricket.
14:11 (IST)
After 9 overs,India 20/0 ( KL Rahul 9 , Mayank Agarwal 11)
FOUR! Lovely drive down the ground by Rahul off Rabada, just a gentle push that is well out of mid off’s reach. First boundary conceded by KG, who has bowled three maidens so far, today.
14:08 (IST)
After 8 overs,India 16/0 ( KL Rahul 5 , Mayank Agarwal 11)
A single off each of the first two balls, before Rahul drives past midwicket off the third ball, getting enough time to come back for a third. Five from the over.
14:04 (IST)
After 7 overs,India 11/0 ( KL Rahul 1 , Mayank Agarwal 10)
Two runs from this over, with KL Rahul finally gets off the mark in the 21st delivery that he faces. Goes for a swivel in the second delivery, guiding the ball towards backward square leg with a short-arm pull for a single. First runs conceded by KG today.
13:58 (IST)
After 6 overs,India 9/0 ( KL Rahul 0 , Mayank Agarwal 9)
Just a single off this over, with Mayank working the ball through the backward square leg region for a single off the fourth delivery.
13:54 (IST)
After 5 overs,India 8/0 ( KL Rahul 0 , Mayank Agarwal 8)
South Africa waste a review early in their innings. Rabada fires a short one at Rahul, which then brushes the Indian vice-captain’s left shoulder before landing in de Kock’s gloves. The Proteas however, think the ball’s got some glove there, and end up wasting a review. Third maiden on the trot for Rabada.
13:49 (IST)
After 4 overs,India 8/0 ( KL Rahul 0 , Mayank Agarwal 8)
FOUR! Lovely square drive by Mayank off Ngidi after being offered a bit of room outside off, collecting the first boundary of the innings. Collects a brace four deliveries later. He’s off to a positive start, with vice-captain Rahul yet to get off the mark on the other hand. Mayank, filling in for Rohit in this series, certainly has a point to prove as he fights for the opener’s slot.
13:43 (IST)
After 3 overs,India 2/0 ( KL Rahul 0 , Mayank Agarwal 2)
Rahul continues to block/leave his way through Rabada’s overs, as the latter collects his second consecutive maiden to begin his spell.
13:40 (IST)
After 2 overs,India 2/0 ( KL Rahul 0 , Mayank Agarwal 2)
Lungisani Ngidi, sharing the new ball with Rabada, steams in from the other end. Just a gentle push through extra cover, along with a misfield by vice-captain Temba Bavuma, and Mayank Agarwal gets India off the mark with a brace. Two from the over.
13:34 (IST)
After 1 over,India 0/0 ( KL Rahul 0 , Mayank Agarwal 0)
KG, starting off with three slips and a forward short leg in place, bowls out a maiden with KL Rahul yet to get off the mark. The series is underway!
13:32 (IST)
The South Africans take the knee ahead of start of play in their fight against racism, while the Indians have their hands on their hearts for the same. Kagiso Rabada is set to bowl the first delivery of the series. KL Rahul, opening alongside Karnataka teammate Mayank Agarwal, faces the first ball.
13:25 (IST)
Players observe a minute’s silence ahead of the national anthems in tribute to the late archbishop and anti-apartheid campaigner Desmond Tutu, who breathed his last aged 90 earlier today. The Proteas, additionally, are wearing black bands.
13:16 (IST)
Teams:
South Africa: Dean Elgar(c), Aiden Markram, Keegan Petersen, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock(wk), Wiaan Mulder, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi
India: KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli(c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant(wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
13:06 (IST)
Dean Elgar, South Africa captain: Nice and relaxing for us to play what will be a brilliant Test series. Few guys have been playing. We had a good week’s camp up in Jo’burg, as well as here in Centurion. We’ve best prepared as well as we could. We’ve got a debutant in Marco Jansen, who’s got a fair bit of reputation with the ‘A’ side. We got three frontlines, Wiaan Mulder as the all-rounder and Keshav as the spinner. Quinton de Kock’s back, and Kyle Verreyne misses out.
13:04 (IST)
Virat Kohli, India captain: Runs on the board, playing away from home, that’s been our strength. The pitch tends to get faster from Day 2 onwards in Centurion. It’s very challenging. Our success away from home started from the series we played here. From that win, we got confidence. This is a very challenging place to play cricket in. They know their conditions, they know their lines and lengths. It’s been wonderful. We were lucky to have centre nets, quite close to the match wicket. We’re playing with three seamers, all rounder Thakur and Ashwin.
13:02 (IST)
TOSS: Virat Kohli wins the toss, and India will have a bat
12:53 (IST)
“If there is one bowler who can exploit South African conditions pretty well, it would be him”
— South Africa Test captain Dean Elgar on the Jasprit Bumrah threat in an interaction with reporters ahead of the first Test at Centurion.
India vs South Africa Live Score, Final Cricket Score and Live Streaming, Latest Updates: Rahul steers a full delivery behind square on the off side off the third delivery, with skipper Elgar cutting the ball off near short third man. No ball called after the delivery, a very marginal call, which brings up the 100 partnership between Agarwal and Rahul. Rahul collects a single off the fifth delivery, with Rabada bowling a short one to Agarwal that is deflected in the direction of the slips, though it falls well short. Three from the over.
1st Test preview: Skipper Virat Kohli will be battling on multiple fronts with an aim to get the tricky team combination right as India have a real shot at winning their first ever away series against South Africa, which is short on experience going into the contest, starting with the Boxing Day Test.
The choice between an untested rookie like Shreyas Iyer and a proven but out-of-form Ajinkya Rahane for the number five slot, is not an enviable one. It’s more like choosing between rock and hard place with fear of unknown being a persistent factor.
Not to mention the hard call on whether Shardul Thakur with far superior skills should be the fifth bowler in place of an ‘over the hill’ Ishant Sharma.
These are not easiest of decisions to make that require copious amounts of tactical acumen mixed in equal proportion with proper communication skills.
In Mumbai, during the New Zealand Test, the team management could “rest” both Rahane and Ishant on the pretext of niggles but if on Sunday, the duo doesn’t figure in the playing eleven, it will be as good as being dropped.
In the last Test, they were “unofficially dropped” and in this one, they will be officially dumped.
Since their historic first visit in 1992, the tour to Rainbow Nation has been an ‘Achilles’ Heel’ for the touring Indian teams and skipper Kohli, who is certainly veering towards the business end of his leadership tenure, will like to achieve a first.
South Africa are no longer the force to reckon with in international cricket as they have been going through a rough transition phase over the past few years.
Ahead of the first Test, here’s all you need to know about when and where to watch the match:
When will the first Test between South Africa and India take place?
The second Test between India and South Africa will take place from 26-30 December, 2021.
What is the venue for South Africa-India match?
The match will take place at the SuperSport Park in Centurion.
When will the match start?
The match will begin at 1.30 pm IST. The toss will take place at 1 pm IST on Day 1.
Which TV channels will broadcast India vs South Africa match?
The match will be telecast on Star Sports Network. The live streaming of the match will also be available on Disney + Hotstar. You can also browse Firstpost.com for live updates and over-by-over commentary.
With inputs from PTI