Hanuma Vihari is playing in place of Virat Kohli in the second Test at the Wanderers.
Opening batter KL Rahul joined Dean Elgar for the toss and revealed that Kohli will miss this Test match due to back spasm. The stand-in captain also informed that Hanuma Vihari will play in place of Virat.
“Unfortunately Virat has had an upper back spasm, the physios are working on him and hopefully he'll recover for the next Test,” Rahul said at the toss.
“It is every Indian player's dream to captain his country. Really honoured and looking forward to this challenge. We have had a few good wins here and hopefully we'll look to continue that. Hanuma Vihari comes in place of Virat. Just the one change. It was a good Test at Centurion overall. We really performed well as a team and are really excited about this match,” he added.
Since Kohli was practising in the nets ahead of the Test match, his absence came as a surprise for the fans and experts alike.
Taking to Twitter, cricket fraternity congratulated Rahul on getting an opportunity to lead India in Tests and also shared their views on Kohli's absence.
Here are the reactions:
KL Rahul won the toss and elected to bat in the second Test. Having won the first Test in Centurion by 113 runs, the visitors are leading the three-match series 1-0. A victory in Johannesburg will see Team India clinching their maiden Test series on South Africa soil.
India’s playing XI for second Test:
KL Rahul(c), Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj