It's controversial/ 'Why is Kohli not captain? Rohit has not proven himself outside India. Why is he there': Ex-IND star

 In the first Test match between India and South Africa, hosted from December 26th to December 28th, South Africa emerged victorious by an innings and 32 runs. India posted 245 runs in their first innings, led by KL Rahul's 101 runs. South Africa responded with a commanding 408 runs in their first innings, largely thanks to Dean Elgar's 185-run contribution. In their second innings, India struggled, managing only 131 runs, with Nandre Burger and Marco Jansen's bowling proving pivotal. Dean Elgar's exceptional batting performance solidified his status as the standout player at the SuperSport Park Cricket Stadium.  

3 things you need to know 

• India lost to South Africa by an innings and 32 runs
• Dean Elgar was named Player of the Match in the first Test
• The Indian Cricket Team failed to perform at its best level

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Subramaniam Badrinath raises concerns over Virat Kohli's Test captaincy post Centurion defeat

In the wake of India's innings defeat in Centurion, former Indian cricketer Subramaniam Badrinath has brought up important concerns about Virat Kohli's absence from leadership within the Indian Test squad. Badrinath emphasised Kohli's stellar record as a Test captain, highlighting his remarkable accomplishments, which include 40 victories, 17 defeats, and over 5000 runs at an average of more than 52 in 68 Tests. Further establishing Kohli's leadership abilities was the historic Test series triumph that India achieved in Australia.

Comparing Kohli's Test skills to Rohit Sharma's, Badrinath said that Kohli is clearly the better batsman in the format. The former batter for India voiced worries about Sharma's patchy opening performance, particularly in foreign environments. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Subramaniam Badrinath said: 

"Kohli has a great record as a Test leader. He has scored more than 5000 runs with an average of 52-plus as a captain. He has 40 wins and 17 losses in 68 Tests. He led us to a tremendous victory in the Australia series. He has the most wins as Test captain after Graeme Smith, Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh," 

Subramaniam Badrinath has questioned Virat Kohli's absence from the captaincy, notably in Test cricket, asking why Kohli isn't leading the team despite being a stronger Test batter than Rohit Sharma. Badrinath believes Kohli has better talents in Test cricket, and he is concerned about Rohit's uneven performance as an opener, particularly in foreign circumstances.

Kohli's enormous experience and established track record in Test cricket, especially his amazing captaincy exploits, are at the foundation of Badrinath's concerns. He feels that the decision to replace Kohli as captain with Sharma should have been properly considered, and he demands a valid explanation for this change in leadership. He added: 

“Why is he not the captain of the Test team? I want to raise this valid question. He is a better Test batter. There is no comparison between Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. He is a big player, in terms of Test cricket. He has scored runs everywhere. Why is he not leading and a weaker player is. As far as I am concerned, a weaker player, who is not yet proven as an opener. He has been in and out. We can consider all that. But I think Rohit Sharma has not proven himself as an opener outside India. Why is he there?,”

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Team India’s updated squad for the 2nd Test against South Africa 

Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna, KS Bharat (wk), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Avesh Khan