In Stats: History Makes Hosts India Favourites vs SA in Tests

India have won three of the six series contested between India and South Africa at home.

After a drawn T20 International rubber, India and South Africa will now clash in a three-match Test series starting 2 October in Visakhapatnam.

The opening Test will mark the start of South Africa's ICC World Test Championship campaign, and will be also be the team’s first outing in the form since the retirements of experienced players Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn.

India, on the other hand, had completed a 2-0 whitewash over West Indies in August in their first tie of the championship.

Here’s a look at India vs South Africa stats from previous ties ahead of the Test series.

• Six series have been contested between India and South Africa in India. India have won three – by 2-1 in 1996-97; by 1-0 in 2004-05 and by 3-0 in 2015-16. South Africa have won just one – by 2-0 in 1999-2000.  Two series contested in 2007-08 and 2009-10 could not produce results, both ending in a 1-1 draw.

• India won three Tests in a series against South Africa for the first time in 2015-16.
• In the 2015-16 Delhi Test, India had set a fourth innings target of 481 – their highest against South Africa, outstripping the 461 in the 1996-97 Kanpur Test.

• Ajinkya Rahane is the only Indian batsman to post a hundred in each innings of a Test match against South Africa – 127 and 100 not out at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi in December 2015.
• In the aforesaid Test, Rahane hit seven sixes (four in the first innings and three in the second) – an Indian record against South Africa.  Navjot Singh Sidhu holds the Indian record, hitting eight sixes during his innings of 124 vs Sri Lanka at Lucknow in January 1994.
• Mohammed Shami's excellent figures of 5 for 28 in the 2017-18 Johannesburg Test are the best by an Indian bowler in a winning cause in Tests in South Africa.
• In the only Test played at Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium at Visakhapatnam in November 2016, India (455 & 204) had defeated England (255 & 158) by 246 runs.

• Captain Virat Kohli (167) and Cheteshwar Pujara (119) had posted hundreds in the first innings of the aforesaid Test.  In fact, Virat Kohli had top scored in both the innings – 167 & 81. He was deservingly named the Man of the Match.
  
• Ravichandran Ashwin's match figures of 8 for 119 (5/67 + 3/52) against England in the 2016-17 Test are the best by a bowler at Visakhapatnam.
  
• Virender Sehwag's triple century (319 off 304 balls) in the 2007-08 Chennai Test remains the only triple hundred in Tests involving India and South Africa.  The said innings remained his career-best score – his only other triple century being 309 against Pakistan at Multan in 2003-04.
  
• Virender Sehwag's tally of 17 sixes in 26 innings is a record in Tests involving India and South Africa.
  
• For South Africa, Hashim Amla, with 253 not out in the 2009-10 Nagpur Test, remains the highest individual innings against India.
  
• Jacques Kallis (7 in 31 innings) and Sachin Tendulkar (7 in 45 innings) jointly hold a record for most hundreds in Tests involving India and South Africa.

• Sachin Tendulkar (1,741 at an average of 42.46) and Jacques Kallis (1,734 at 69.36) are the top two run-getters in Tests involving India and South Africa.
• Anil Kumble, with 84 wickets at 31.79 runs apiece in 21 matches, holds the record for most wickets in Tests involving India and South Africa.  For South Africa, the record is held by Dale Steyn, with 65 wickets at 21.53 in 14 Tests.
• Quinton de Kock's tally of 17 dismissals (all caught) in the three-Test 2017-18 series is a record by a wicketkeeper in a series involving India and South Africa.
• Shaun Pollock, Venkatesh Prasad, Ravichandran Ashwin, Allan Donald and Dale Steyn have produced an instance of 10 wickets or more in a Test match each involving India and South Africa.
• AB de Villiers, with 25 catches in 20 matches, is the leading fielder in Tests involving India and South Africa.

• Graeme Smith has led in more Tests involving India and South Africa, winning six, losing five and drawing the remaining four out of 15 contested. Virat Kohli enjoys success percentage of 57.14 as captain – winning four, losing two and drawing the remaining one out of seven contested.
• Wriddhiman Saha, with 10 dismissals (all caught) in the 2017-18 Cape Town Test, remains the only wicketkeeper to effect 10 dismissals in a Test match involving India and South Africa.
• South Africa has defeated India by an innings margin four times – an innings & 90 runs at Ahmedabad in April 2008; an innings & 71 runs at Bengaluru in March 2000; innings & 25 runs at Centurion in December 2010 and an innings & 6 runs at Nagpur in February 2010.  India's only triumph by such a margin was by an innings & 57 runs at Kolkata in February 2010.
• Sachin Tendulkar holds the record for appearing in most Tests (25), followed by 21 each by three players – Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid and Hashim Amla.