Updated 18 November 2025 at 10:07 IST

Indian Batting Order Likely To Go Through Forced Changes In Guwahati, Problems Mount For Gautam Gambhir's Men Ahead Of IND Vs SA 2nd Test

South Africa defeated India by 30 runs in the first Test to go 1-0 up in the first IND vs SA match. The second game of the series will be played in Guwahati

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Gautam Gambhir and Shubman Gill | Image: Associated Press

South Africa trapped India in their own 'pitch ploy' as they went on to win the Eden Gardens Test by 30 runs to go 1-0 up in the two-match series. The Proteas arrived in India with their tag of being the World Test Champions, and they lived up to their title. India were asked to chase a total of 124 runs in the final innings of the game, but they fell short by 30 odd runs.

The hosts are being criticized immensely for their choice of pitch and how they were trapped in their own game plan, but India have a lot of soul-searching to do before they head to Guwahati for the second India vs South Africa Test match. Surface, team combination, number three conundrum, and injury issues, the hosts will have to defy all odds in order to win the Guwahati Test and level the series.

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Shubman Gill Unlikely To Travel To Guwahati: Report

Things took a different turn for Team India after Shubman Gill suffered a neck injury while batting during the first India vs South Africa Test. The skipper soon walked away from the field and had to be given immediate medical attention. With never-ending suspense around the Indian ODI and Test skipper's ongoing struggles with fitness, it is now being reported that he might not travel with the team for the second Test.

Shubman Gill walks off after picking up neck injury | Image: Associated Press

"He has acute neck pain, and we're not allowed to further go into details about the injury. He has to keep continuing wearing the neck collar. He has been advised three-four days' rest and not to take flight. In this situation, he is not advised to travel to Guwahati," a source said as quoted by PTI.

After Gill sustained the injury, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had issued a statement on Day 2 and later ruled him out of the remainder of the match.

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All Eyes On Guwahati Track

The Kolkata Test match has grabbed all the spotlight courtesy of how the pitch played. Indian Head Coach Gautam Gambhir was extremely honest about the fact that there were no demons in the surface and the hosts were given what they had asked for. Will India opt for a similar kind of track in Guwahati? Only time has an answer to that.

Published By : Jishu Bhattacharya

Published On: 18 November 2025 at 09:59 IST