🏏South Africa tour of India - 2025: India vs SA - 2nd Test🏏

🏏South Africa tour of India - 2025: India vs SA - 2nd Test on 22/11/2025 @ 9:00 AM IST🏏

Mystery pitch adds to intrigue in Guwahati's Test debut

The best India can hope for is to finish with honours even, while world champions South Africa have a chance to make it a second series defeat for India in their last three

Back in 2015-16, when the Test contest between India and South Africa was named Freedom Trophy, or alternatively the Mandela-Gandhi Trophy, both sides committed to treat it as a marquee contest. For the first time since 1992-93, they played four Tests in a series. A major part of such a commitment is to avoid the unsatisfactory two-match series. It was good while it lasted. All of four series. This is the second straight two-match series between these two evenly matched rivals.

While India are not responsible for shortening of these series, they are at the receiving end of the series' brevity. Once again, a series win is impossible for them after 2.67 days of cricket. The best they can do now is level it; the worst will mean a second series defeat at home in the last three after 12 years of winning every home series.

It should come as no surprise that the leaders of the time find themselves under the pump despite all the success in ODIs and T20Is. In fact, it speaks to the health of Test cricket in India that a home defeat, even if it comes against the world champions, draws such sharp reaction.

After two fruitless tours of India in the last decade, South Africa would have been glad the depth of their attack was not tested in Kolkata. With Kagiso Rabada missing and Keshav Maharaj off colour, they still managed to take 20 wickets mostly through Simon Harmer and Marco Jansen.

With some of the equivocality around their world champions status now dissipated, they will look to find a way once again to take 20 wickets and go away with a series win from the toughest place to tour. India will want to test that depth and make sure their country continues to stay the toughest place to tour, and not get relegated to "formerly the toughest place to tour".

In the spotlight: Ravindra Jadeja and Simon Harmer

The first Test practically came down to a second-innings shootout between the two best spinners in the match. The margin for error was so low that you couldn't afford even one remotely ordinary spell. Harmer, now as good a spinner as any in the world, took 4 for 21. Ravindra Jadeja, after bowling a near-unplayable spell of 13-3-29-4 on the second evening, went searching a bit on the third morning. This Test will hopefully bring out more aspects of their bowling.

When: India vs South Africa, 2nd Test, November 22-26 2025, 9:00 AM IST

Where: Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati

What to expect: Guwahati has rolled out a red soil surface for its maiden Test. Expect some bounce early on, but not of the unpredictable kind like in Kolkata. There'll also be an early start to play - by 30 minutes - to account for the early sunset in this part of the country. In Kolkata, play couldn't go beyond 4:30 pm on the first two days. In Guwahati, full darkness sets in by then. This Test will also flip the session breaks order, with Tea coming before Lunch, to squeeze in as many overs as possible before the light goes.

Team news:

India

Shubman Gill is officially out even as his condition has improved over the last few days. Rishabh Pant will lead in his place.

Some pre-match habits offered an indication of how India will approach replacing their No.4 batter. Sai Sudharsan usually doesn't train one day before the game he plays in. He hit the nets in Kolkata one day before that Test and ended up making way for Axar Patel. In Guwahati, he trained two days out from the fixture and did shadow practice at the top of the match pitch. On the eve of this game, Sudharsan was at it again, visualising his batting at the main ground while KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal batted in the optional session.

Picking him would add a seventh left-handed batter to their line-up. South Africa off-spinner Simon Harmer would welcome such a move that brings him into the game even more. Pant, however, said that the team management is congnizant of an overload of left-handers in their line-up. That points towards the possibility of offloading one such player - possibly Axar for the right-handed Nitish Reddy, while Sudharsan replaces Gill.

Probable XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Washington Sundar, Sai Sudharsan, Dhruv Jurel, Rishabh Pant (c & wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel/Nitish Reddy, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj

South Africa

Kagiso Rabada is not fit for the game. Lungi Ngidi, who was added to the squad as cover, has trained with the team on two days leading up to the game. Bavuma admitted there's a 'temptation' to play him in a venue where the expectation is for quicks to be involved early on. He however, reckoned he'll reserve his judgement for the morning of the fixture. If he chooses to go with Ngidi, Corbin Bosch will likely make way.

Probable XI: Ryan Rickelton, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Temba Bavuma (c), Tony de Zorzi, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne (wk), Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch/Lungi Ngidi, Simon Harmer, Keshav Maharaj

Did you know:

- Temba Bavuma is the fastest to register 10 Test wins as captain - in just 11 matches. His only miss so far was the rain-affected draw against West Indies at Port-of-Spain last year.

- Simon Harmer in Tests in India: 3 matches, 18 wickets at an average of 16.94 and strike-rate of 37.5

- Yashasvi Jaiswal vs South Africa in Tests: 62 runs in 6 innings at an average of 10.33 and a highest score of 28

Pitch and conditions

This is a big occasion for Guwahati as it becomes the eastern-most Test venue in India. The inadequacy of one time zone in a country as vast as India is apparent from how this Test will need to start at 9am in order to beat the early sunset. The first session break, at 11am, will be tea; lunch will be taken at 1.20pm.

It is hardly ideal that all eyes will be on the pitch of a debutant venue but it is what it is after an underprepared surface in Kolkata undid India. There has been high drama around the pitch with coach Gautam Gambhir saying it had been made to his order only for batting coach Sitanshu Kotak to say that Gambhir actually sacrificed himself to prevent throwing the curator under the bus, in the process throwing said curator under said bus.

Both the captains expect this pitch to be good for batting in the early exchanges before starting to turn. Which is exactly what they said before Kolkata, except that now they have added that it should play better than Kolkata. So make of it what you will.

Stats and trivia

Kolkata was the first Test and the first toss that South Africa won in India since 2010.

Nobody other than Bosch and Muthusamy in the South Africa squad averages over 40 with the bat in Test cricket. None of them averages 50 in first-class cricket overall.

Before he took over the Test captaincy, Temba Bavuma averaged 34.53. As captain, he averages 57.

Here are 3 players who can replace Shubman Gill in second Test against South Africa

3. Ruturaj Gaikwad

Maharashtra batter Ruturaj Gaikwad stands out as one of the strongest contenders for a call-up. He has been in sublime touch across formats, excelling in domestic cricket as well as in India A fixtures. In the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2025-26 season, Gaikwad has already scored two half-centuries and a well-crafted century in just two matches.

His performances in the India A three-match ODI series were equally impressive, where he registered a century and a fifty against competitive bowling attacks. Gaikwad’s ability to adapt to different surfaces, build an innings, and maintain composure under pressure makes him a compelling option to replace Gill.

2. Karun Nair

Karun Nair is another strong candidate who could step into the squad. The Karnataka batter, known for his historic triple century in Test cricket, has been in superb domestic form. Although his performances on the England tour were underwhelming, he has bounced back remarkably in the Ranji Trophy.

1. Rajat Patidar

Rajat Patidar, the prolific Madhya Pradesh batter and current state captain, is another frontline choice. Patidar has been in excellent touch, highlighted by an unbeaten double century against Punjab in the Ranji Trophy. His performances in the Duleep Trophy were equally noteworthy, where he struck two centuries and two fifties, playing a pivotal role in Central Zone’s title win.