"Indian batters will breathe a sigh of relief" - Salman Butt feels Anrich Nortje's injury has handed advantage to Virat Kohli-led side

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt believes the Indian team have a massive advantage in the three-match Test series against South Africa. This is because pacer Anrich Nortje has been ruled out of the series to commence on December 26.

Butt hailed the pacer as South Africa's best bowling option. He reckoned the Indian batters would be happy that they wouldn't have to face him.

The former opener spoke about the same in a recent live session on his official YouTube channel. He noted how Nortje is one of the pre-eminent exponents of short-pitched bowling. He feels it is a big loss for the Proteas as he has the ability to trouble the best of the batters with his bowling.

Salman Butt said:

"Indian batters will breathe a sigh of relief as Anrich Nortje has been ruled out. He's known to bowl short-pitched deliveries and can make a significant impact with his line and length. Definitely an advantage to the Indian team."

Despite Anrich Nortje's injury, South Africa still have a formidable bowling attack that will test the Indian batters. Moreover, the visitors will be without seasoned campaigner Rohit Sharma for red-ball games. Senior players like Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara have also been short of runs lately.

Butt opined that the only way for Rahane to get out of his bad patch is to score big runs. He emphasized how there's no other option left for India's Test specialist than to score runs consistently in order to safeguard his position in the side

"Ajinkya Rahane will have to score runs on a consistent basis. There's no other way he can end his lean phase," Butt added

The touring party have commenced their training sessions in the Rainbow nation. The players are gearing up for what promises to be a closely fought series between the two cricketing nations.

"There was nothing to benefit from the whole Virat Kohli-BCCI episode" - Salman Butt

Salman Butt, in the video, mentioned that it was the right move to look past the Virat Kohli-BCCI saga. He stated that no positives could be taken from the whole incident. This is why he feels it is the right step to sweep those issues under the carpet ahead of a crucial overseas series.

Butt said:

"There was nothing to benefit from the whole episode. Things could have only gotten worse. It's good to avoid that as much as possible."

Virat Kohli-led side will lock horns against South Africa in the Test series opener at SuperSport Park in Centurion from December 26.

Watch Salman Butt's full video here: