Team India star Virat Kohli is set to surpass Rahul Dravid and Virendra Sehwag in a top list of batters in the Test Series against South Africa. Kohli will be seen in blues for the first time after the ODI World Cup 2023 final.

Virat Kohli will surely aim to move past the heartbreaking defeat of the 2023 World Cup final and begin afresh as he returns to action in the South Africa Test Series. Team India is gearing up for the two-match test series which will get underway on 26 December with the first Test match at the SuperSport Park Cricket Stadium in Centurion.

Kohli has already moved ahead of long-standing records. During the World Cup 2023, Virat, the run machine, broke Sachin Tendulkar’s milestone record of scoring 49 ODI hundreds as he reached his 50th ton in the semi-final match against New Zealand. He also emerged as the highest run scorer (765 runs at an average of 95.62) in the World Cup 2023. 

Now, all eyes are on Virat Kohli as he is on the verge of surpassing Rahul Dravid and Virendra Sehwag’s records of scoring the most runs against South Africa in Test matches. In the Test series, Kohli has a golden opportunity to enlist his name after the two legendary Indian players who scored the most runs against the Proteas. 

The modern-day cricketer has made 1236 runs in 14 Tests at an average of 56.18 against South Africa in red-ball cricket till now. For the third spot in the elite list, he is just 17 runs short of surpassing Rahul Dravid who had 1252 runs in this format against South Africa. To dethrone Virendra Sehwag (1306 runs in 15 Test matches), he needs 71 runs more. Sachin Tendulkar reigns the overall Indian batter list in Test cricket against Proteas with 1741 runs in 25 Test matches maintaining an average of 42.46. To be on top of the tally, Kohli will need to make 505 or more runs in Tests against South Africa.

Kohli and captain Rohit return in national colours

After a mixed year for the Indian cricket team, Rohit Sharma and his company are all set to have a fresh start. The Test series against South Africa is one of the opportunities that would act as a healer for the loss in Ahmedabad on 19th November. South Africa is the toughest place to play as a batter, according to the Indian skipper. 

Virat-Rohit duo is returning after a one-month break. They seem desperate to achieve what other Indian teams in the past have failed to make on South African soil. There has been no success since 1992 when India started to play Test series in South Africa.

South Africa ready to launch ‘Rabada’ in the 1st Test

From the Indian perspective, the return of Kagiso Rabada would be the hardest threat to clinch the series. The frontline pacer was rested from the white ball cricket as he was going through a heel injury. On Saturday evening, Rabada and Ngidi were seen practising in full swing at the Centurion. Both the pacers will make the job harder for Indian batters.