The Indian team is playing the second and final test match of the series against South Africa on November 22nd (Saturday) at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati. Rishabh Pant is leading the Indian team as captain in this match. This is Pant’s first match as a Test captain. He got this opportunity because Shubman Gill is injured. Pant is the 38th Test captain of India.
Rishabh Pant's captaincy didn't start on a high note as he lost the toss. South Africa’s captain Temba Bavuma won the toss and decided to bat first. This means the Indian team is compelled to bowl first. Pant losing the toss isn’t surprising since the Indian team's luck with tosses has been unfavorable lately.
From the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 to now, the Indian team has played a total of 29 matches across all formats. During this time, the Indian team managed to win the toss in only 6 matches, while losing it in 23 matches. Formats and captains changed, but the team's luck in tosses didn’t seem to change. In the Champions Trophy, Indian captain Rohit Sharma couldn’t win the toss in five matches. While on the England tour, Shubman Gill lost the toss in all five Test matches.
In the Asia Cup 2025, Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav won the toss four times but lost it three times. In the test series against the West Indies, the toss score was 1-1. Then, during the Australia tour, India played 5 T20 Internationals and 3 ODIs. During this, India could only win the toss in the Hobart T20. Now, in the test series against South Africa, India has lost the toss in both matches.
India's Misfortune with Tosses
Champions Trophy 2025 - Lost all 5 tosses. England Tour - Lost the toss in all 5 Test matches. Asia Cup 2025 - Won toss in 4 matches, lost in 3 matches. West Indies Series - Lost toss in one Test, won in another. Australia Tour - Won only one toss out of 8 matches. South Africa Series - Lost the toss in both Test matches.
Another surprising fact is that the Indian team has consecutively lost 18 tosses in One Day International format. India last won the toss on November 15, 2023. Back then, India faced New Zealand in the semifinal of the Cricket World Cup. Then on November 19, 2023, they faced the Australian team in the World Cup Final. From that match, the unwanted streak of losing tosses in ODIs began. The possibility of losing the toss 18 times consecutively is only 1/131072, which is less than one percent.
What Did Rishabh Pant Say at the Toss?
Indian captain Rishabh Pant expressed, 'It is a moment of pride for me. As a cricketer, you always dream of leading the nation. I am grateful to the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) for giving me this opportunity. I never thought of it before, but now that the opportunity has come, it must be seized with both hands and the best must be given for the team.'
Pant further added, 'Our environment is such that we focus on our game. We concentrate on where improvements can be made and how we can fight together. The pitch looks good for batting, but bowling first is not a bad option either. Shubman is recovering slowly. He was very eager to play the match, but his body was not allowing it at this time. He will return stronger. Nitish Reddy has replaced Shubman in the team, and Sai Sudarshan has been included in place of Axar.'
