Not Ashwin, Jadeja Or Bumrah! Kallis Picks 111-Test Veteran As Key Player For India Against South Africa

India will face South Africa in a two-match Test series during their ongoing tour of the Rainbow Nation. The first Test will start on December 26 and is scheduled to take place at the SuperSport Park in Centurion, whereas the second Test will be played at Newlands in Cape Town on January 3, 2024. Rohit Sharma will be back to lead Team India in Test matches, along with Virat Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Jasprit Bumrah.

Rohit, Bumrah, Kohli, and Ashwin haven't played a competitive match since India’s defeat against Australia in the final of the ODI World Cup 2023. India hasn’t won a Test series in South Africa so far, and this year the Rohit Sharma-led side would like to create history. Ahead of the start of the red-ball series between India and South Africa, legendary South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis has praised star Indian batter Kohli and said that if India has to win the series, then Kohli will need to have a good series.

“He’s a massive player, no matter where it is. Having played here quite a bit and had a fair amount of success. He’ll be able to pass that knowledge on to the other guys, especially the younger guys, and give them ideas on how to manage these conditions and then what to expect,” Kallis told Star Sports.

“I am sure he will want to have a big series here in South Africa. He has been in good form. I think he will play a major role in helping India. If they are to win here, he will have to have a good series,” he added.

Kohli has played in a total of seven Tests in South Africa, and in 14 innings, he has scored 719 runs at an average of 51.35. The former India captain has hammered two Test centuries and three fifties on South African soil.