This is the first time that Rahul will be leading India, with Kohli out due to back spasm
Toss India chose to bat vs South Africa
“Unfortunately Virat has had an upper back spasm. The physios are on him, hopefully he’ll recover for the next Test,” Rahul said at the toss. “It’s always every Indian player’s dream to captain his country. Today I’ve got this opportunity, so really grateful and looking forward to the challenge. We’ve had a few good wins here and want to continue to do that.”
South Africa captain Dean Elgar said Kohli missing “didn’t really bother him”, saying his side were focused on the upcoming Test match. “Losing Quinny is never ideal, but as I’ve alluded to the team, we need to carry on,” Elgar said of missing de Kock.
It’s a balmy day in Johannesburg, with overnight thunderstorms having given way to clear skies.
India: 1 KL Rahul (capt), 2 Mayank Agarwal, 3 Cheteshwar Pujara, 4 Ajinkya Rahane, 5 Hanuma Vihari, 6 Rishabh Pant (wk), 7 R Ashwin, 8 Shardul Thakur, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Mohammed Siraj
South Africa: 1 Dean Elgar (capt), 2 Aiden Markram, 3 Keegan Petersen, 4 Rassie van der Dussen, 5 Temba Bavuma, 6 Kyle Verreynne (wk), 7 Marco Jansen, 8 Kagiso Rabada, 9 Keshav Maharaj, 10 Duanne Olivier, 11 Lungi Ngidi
Saurabh Somani is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo