India vs South Africa 2021: 3 milestones Indian players can reach

As India gear up for their third Test against South Africa at Newlands in Cape Town on Tuesday (January 11), there are a string of milestones some of their key players can achieve.

The return of skipper Virat Kohli, who missed the second Test due to a back spasm, is good news as the visitors' batting will be bolstered a notch further. Should Kohli break his run drought, he could reach two major milestones, one of which is mentioned below.

Ahead of the third Test, we take a look at some of the landmarks that Indian players can get to if they put in some promising performances.

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#1 Virat Kohli needs 146 runs to reach 8000 Test runs

Skipper Virat Kohli is just 146 runs away from becoming the sixth Indian batter to reach 8,000 runs in Test cricket.

The other illustrious batters to have breached the mark are — Sachin Tendulkar (15921), Rahul Dravid (13265), Sunil Gavaskar (10122), VVS Laxman (8781), and Virender Sehwag (8503).

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#2 Mohammed Shami needs 5 wickets to become second India pacer to bag 50 wickets against SA

Mohammed Shami is one of the seamers who has had a great run with the ball and he has a chance to achieve a major milestone when he takes the field in the third Test.

With 45 wickets against the Proteas, the pacer needs five wickets to be the fifth bowler and second pacer after former quick Javagal Srinath to pick up 50 Test wickets.

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#3 Ajinkya Rahane needs 79 runs to reach 5000 Test runs

The Mumbai batter was off to a start, but he failed to capitalize in both Tests. When the third Test gets underway, Ajinkya Rahane will have a chance to reach 5000 Test runs if he scores 79 runs.

The other batters in that range are Kapil Dev (5298), GR Viswanath (6080) and Cheteshwar Pujara (6681).