The Indian cricket team will take on the South African team in the first Test of the two-match series at Supersport Park in Centurion, starting on Tuesday, December 26. However, there is a potential threat of heavy rain on the opening day of the Boxing Day test match.

India started the tour of South Africa on a positive note, showing strong performances in white-ball matches. The Men in Blue drew the T20I series and claimed a 2-1 victory in the ODIs. The visiting team is now turning its attention to the next two test matches.

Watch: Centurion weather update ahead of first test

The Indian team will be left without the services of Mohamed Shami, as he has been sidelined with a heel injury. Ishan Kishan backed out of the series due to personal reasons, leading to the inclusion of KS Bharat. Abhimanyu Easwaran replaces the injured Ruturaj Gaikwad.

It could be difficult to bat first – Centurion Curator

Centurion curator Bryan Bloy expressed uncertainty about playing conditions, citing a significant drop in temperature. Bloy noted that if the field remains covered due to rain, the team that bats first could face challenges.

“The temperature will be very low, like 20 degrees. The temperature is now 34 and it will drop to 20. I don’t know what the conditions will be like or if we will be able to play on day 1. Hopefully, we will play a little and it will be cold on day 3 and I don’t know how much shift will be available. Bloy said.

“I can’t guarantee the forecast, but if it stays undercover for the better part of two days, then it might be difficult to get it right first because it’s been undercover for so long and hasn’t been shot for so long, we can’t guarantee that.” “We know how much time we will have to prepare the field to play in the current situation,” he stated.

South Africa Test Team: Temba Bavuma (c), David Bedingham, Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Tony de Zorzi, Dean Elgar, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Keegan Petersen, Kagiso Rabada, Tristan Stubbs and Kyle Verreynne.

India Test Team: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Prasidh Krishna, KS Bharat (week), Abhimanyu Easwaran.

Also Read: IND vs SA: “I don’t know how long KL Rahul wants to keep wickets…” – Rohit Sharma