Rabada ruled out of second India Test after failing to recover from rib injury

New Delhi: South Africa's fast bowling spearhead, Kagiso Rabada, will remain sidelined for the red-ball tour of India after he was ruled out of the second Test beginning in Guwahati on Saturday, as he has not fully recovered from the rib injury he sustained during a training session ahead of the series opener in Kolkata.

Proteas skipper Temba Bavuma gave an update on the star pacer's fitness on the eve of the second Test. Rabada also missed the opening Test at the Eden Gardens, which the visitors won by 30 runs.

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"Kagiso has been ruled out of the second Test," said the Proteas skipper.

Due to the growing uncertainty surrounding Rabada's unavailability, South Africa added Lungi Ngidi to the squad earlier this week.

The nature of the Eden Gardens track was the biggest talking point after the conclusion of the first Test, with none of the teams managing to cross the 200-run mark across four innings. Spinners did the most damage, on what was a sluggish, slow and inconsistent pitch.

With the Eden Gardens pitch hogging all the limelight last week, questions about the Guwahati track seemed inevitable ahead of the second Test.

When asked about the pitch, Bavuma said that the Guwahati track gave a feeling of a typical sub-continental wicket, which is likely to be good for batting on the first couple of days and then becomes conducive for the slow bowlers.

"This wicket looks a lot fresher and will be more consistent in terms of variability compared to Kolkata. We will have another look in the morning and decide on Kagiso's replacement," the skipper opined.

"This is a typical sub-continental wicket with the first two days good for batting before spinners come into play."

The fact that this will be the first Test match to be held at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium creates a degree of suspense surrounding the expected behaviour of the track.