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India’s national cricket team will host that of South Africa at Dr. Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA–VDCA Cricket Stadium in Vishakhapatnam in the first of three test matches.
In the United States, the match will start Tuesday night at 11:50 p.m. ET. It won’t be on TV anywhere in the US, but can watch the match live right here on ESPN+, the digital streaming service from ESPN that has exclusive coverage of the entire South Africa Tour of India, plus dozens of other live sports, all the 30-for-30 documentaries and other original content for $4.99 per month.
You can sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then watch a live stream of India vs South Africa on your computer via ESPN.com, or on your phone (Android and iPhone compatible), tablet, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, or other streaming device via the ESPN app.
India vs South Africa 1st Test Preview
In the sides’ T20 series finale on September 22, the Proteas bested India by nine wickets to split the three-match set. The first match was washed out, and the Men in Blue claimed the second by seven wickets.
Men in Blue captain Virat Kohli became the first captain in seven ODIs at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru to elect to bat first in the series decider. The Proteas chased down India’s 134 with 3.1 overs left to play.
After the defeat, Kohli said this strategy served as part of the team’s preparation for next year’s T20 World Cup.
“Yes, we wanted to go for a big score and that’s exactly why we batted first,” Kohli said, according to ESPNcricinfo. “In the past, in certain games in T20 cricket, we have been 20-30 runs short batting first. That has cost us the game. So, the idea again as I said at the toss, was to come out of our comfort zone and then try to get that big score because we are batting till No. 9. But quickly we realized the pitch didn’t allow us to keep doing that.”
He added: “Nothing is a given or a guarantee before you start playing. I think if we as a team are willing to get out of our comfort zones a lot more, then we will be unfazed with what happens at the toss. That’s why we have people batting till nine. Unless you do that and start taking those risks, you are always going to be put under pressure somewhere or the other. We want to make sure we iron all of those things out before we head into the World Cup.”
South Africa haven’t played test cricket since they dropped a pair to Sri Lanka at St. George’s Oval in February. They’ve since lost Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn to retirement.
“Spotlight will be on a lot of big players to make a statement,” South Africa fast bowler Vernon Philander said, according to the official ICC website. “Our job is to come here and give the first punch as India is obviously expected to do well. We are known as a team who starts slow so this time around we have to start well. There is a lot of pressure on players [but then] it’s international cricket and you want to keep it that way.
“We are obviously prepared to do well. When we do well, it gives you that better confidence and I’ll take that confidence with me. It’s been a long winter for me and I am feeling in really good nick.”
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