Kolkata, India – South Africa have won the toss and elected to bat first against India at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on November 14, 2025. The toss, won by Proteas captain Temba Bavuma, marks the return of Test cricket to Kolkata after six long years. The last Test match in Kolkata was India vs Bangladesh pink-ball Test in 2019. This is India's first Test at Eden Gardens since 2019.
Bavuma cited the dry pitch conditions as a key factor in his decision, emphasizing the importance of putting runs on the board in the first innings. He also noted the excitement of playing in front of a large crowd in India.
India, led by Shubman Gill, will field a spin-heavy attack, including four specialist spinners: Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav and Washington Sundar. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj will be the two pace spearheads. Rishabh Pant makes his return to the side, boosting the batting lineup and taking his place behind the stumps. Nitish Kumar Reddy has been released to the India A side.
In a surprising move, Sai Sudharsan has been dropped from the Indian team to accommodate Axar Patel. Washington Sundar is slated to bat at No. 3.
South Africa will be without Kagiso Rabada, who has been ruled out due to a rib injury sustained during training. Corbin Bosch replaces him in the playing XI. Temba Bavuma said, "Rabada misses out due to a rib injury; Corbin Bosch comes in his place". The South African team includes two spinners: Keshav Maharaj and Simon Harmer. Wiaan Mulder retains his place at No 3. Marco Jansen is preferred to Senuran Muthusamy.
India XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Washington Sundar, Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.
South Africa XI: Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton, Wiaan Mulder, Temba Bavuma (c), Tony de Zorzi, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne (wk), Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj.
India and South Africa have a closely contested history in Test matches, with South Africa holding a slight edge of 18 wins to India's 16. However, India has dominated recent encounters on home soil, winning 7 of the last 8 matches. The two teams are competing in the World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.
