In an unexpected development ahead of the second game of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship series between the Indian cricket team and the South African cricket team, the Indian Test captain Virat Kohli has suffered an injury. As a result, he is not playing in Johannesburg. In his absence, wicket-keeper batter KL Rahul is captaining the visitors, while Dean Elgar is South Africa’s captain.
Fans should note that this is the first time the Indian cricket team is playing under the captaincy of KL Rahul. In the past, when Virat Kohli skipped a Test match due to any reason, Ajinkya Rahane was the one who got the chance to lead the team. Under Rahane’s captaincy, India managed to overturn a 0-1 trail in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and win the series 2-1 against Australia last year.
Since Ajinkya Rahane’s form has dipped after that series, the Indian team management decided to name Rohit Sharma as the new vice-captain of the Test team. However, just before the Indian cricket team’s departure to South Africa, Rohit suffered a hamstring injury. Because of that reason, the selectors named KL Rahul as the new vice-captain.
South Africa captain Dean Elgar seems unfazed by Virat Kohli’s absence at The Wanderers Stadium
KL Rahul won his first toss in international cricket and decided to bat first at The Wanderers Stadium. When asked about how he felt regarding Virat Kohli’s absence in Johannesburg, Dean Elgar was quoted as saying by Sportskeeda:
“Doesn’t really bother me about the big player missing out on the opposition side. We’ve got a Test match to win.”
Although South Africa are playing in home conditions, they are down 0-1 in the ongoing ICC World Test Championship series against the Indian cricket team. It will be interesting to see if Dean Elgar and Co. can level the score in Johannesburg, a venue where they have never beaten India in a Test match.
