Returning captain Virat Kohli says he has nothing to prove as India go in search of a historic Test series victory over South Africa at Newlands.
Kohli will return to lead the tourists for the decider in Cape Town on Tuesday after missing a seven-wicket defeat at the Wanderers last week due to back spasms.
Hanuma Vihari would appear to be the most likely batter to step aside for the fit-again skipper in Cape Town, where India have never beaten the Proteas in five attempts in the longest format and must end that record to secure a first Test series win in South Africa.
Kohli's last Test century came against Bangladesh back in November 2019, but the 33-year-old feels the increased scrutiny on him is due to the incredible exploits that have established him as one of the best players in the world.
"It's not the first time [his form has been called into question]," Kohli said. "It's happened a few times in my career - England 2014 was one of those phases.
"But the thing is, I don't look at myself from the lens that the outside world looks at me with, and eventually the standards that we're talking about today, that I'm being compared with, have been set by myself, and more than anyone else, I take a lot of pride in wanting to do the best thing for the team that I can, and wanting to perform regularly for the team, and hence I've been able to do that for a long period of time.
"You have to understand, in sport sometimes, things do not go the way you want them to go, but at the end of the day I realise, as a player, as a batsman, that I've been involved in very important moments for the team over the last calendar year or so, and for me that is a matter of a lot of pride, that I have been part of very important partnerships when the team needed me, and eventually those moments have been crucial for us in many Test matches.
"So sometimes your focal point has to shift; if all the time you're going to look at yourself and judge yourself on the basis of numbers and milestones, I don't think you'll ever be content or happy with what you're doing.
"I take a lot of pride and happiness in the process that I'm following, and I'm at peace with how I'm playing and what I'm being able to do for the team when there is a tricky scenario, and as long as I'm doing that, and taking a lot of pride and motivation to be in those moments.
"I have nothing else to worry about, because the reality of the situation is that you eventually want to make impact performances for the team, and my best effort is always to do that, and I truly believe that I don't need to prove anything to anyone.
"It's just that when you're in the place where I am, you are going to be constantly judged, and that is the job of the outside world. I don't look at myself like that."
Half-century for Proteas paceman Rabada
Rabada will play his 50th Test at a ground where South Africa have only lost once in the longest format - against England two years ago - since the start of 2015.
Captain Dean Elgar, man of the match in the second Test after making a brilliant unbeaten 96 as South Africa chased down 240 to level the series at 1-1, revealed Rabada needed a "rocket" to fire him up following a loss in the first Test.
Rabada responded by taking three wickets in both innings in Johannesburg and Elgar will expect him to fire again with the pressure on in the final Test.
India ponder Siraj replacement
The tourists will be without Mohammed Siraj after he suffered a hamstring injury in the second Test, so either Ishant Sharma or Umesh Yadav are set to get the nod but Kohli kept his cards close to his chest on the eve of the match.
He said: "We are yet to sit down - myself, the head coach, the vice-captain - to decide what we want to do about [Siraj's] replacement.
"I say that because of our bench strength. It's difficult for us to figure out who will play because everyone is at the top of their game, bowling well, batting well, and these things become a point of discussion, contention, and you have to obviously have a healthy discussion around a decision like that, and just agree that everyone feels balanced about it.
"So yeah, we're yet to have that discussion, but I would rather be in this position where we are yet to decide who's going to play rather than having to figure out other options in terms of managing our balance and stuff like that."
Barcelona 3-1 Espanyol: Olmo brace sends Blaugrana nine points clear
Barcelona moved nine points clear at the LaLiga summit following a 3-1 victory over Espanyol in the Catalan derby.
Dani Olmo scored twice while Raphinha was also on target as Hansi Flick's side stretched their advantage over second-place Real Madrid, whose scheduled showdown with Valencia this weekend was postponed.
Barca broke the deadlock after just 12 minutes. Olmo latched onto Lamine Yamal's brilliant throughball with the outside of his boot, before beating Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia with a well-taken first-time finish.
The hosts doubled their lead 11 minutes later with Marc Casado finding Raphinha, who bravely lifted over the advancing Garcia.
It was 3-0 just after the half-hour mark, as Olmo received Alejandro Balde's pass before drilling home from the edge of the penalty area.
Espanyol, who saw two goals disallowed following VAR reviews, pulled one back when Javi Puado turned home Carlos Romero's cross in the 63rd minute.
However, it proved a consolation for the visitors, who suffered their sixth defeat in seven league games.
Data Debrief: Free-scoring Barca maintain derby dominance
Now unbeaten in 27 LaLiga derbies against Espanyol, Barcelona have now scored 40 goals this season; their second-highest tally after the first 12 games of a LaLiga season (42 in 1950-51).
Following Olmo's brace, which took his tally for the campaign to five, the Blaugrana are the only team with four different players to have scored at least five goals in Europe's top five leagues this term.
In setting up Raphinha's goal, Casado is the first Barca player from Spain to provide an assist in three successive games in all competitions since at least the 2014-15 season.
Zverev soars past Humbert to claim Paris Masters crown
Alexander Zverev soared to the Paris Masters title following a commanding 6-2 6-2 victory over home favourite Ugo Humbert in the final.
The German took just 75 minutes to seal his seventh career ATP Masters triumph, and second silverware of the season.
Humbert received a raucous reception as he aimed to become the first Frenchman to win this event since Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in 2008.
However, the crowd were silenced when Zverev broke in the third and fifth games on his way to taking the opening set.
The Italian Open champion also dominated the second set, dropping just five points on serve as he wrapped up a comfortable victory.
"I knew I had to play like this to win today," Zverev said. "Ugo is an incredible player, but here in Paris, he plays even better than he usually does, and I knew that.
"Once the crowd gets involved, it's going to be difficult. So, I had to take that away early, and I did, so I'm happy about that."
Zverev was also delighted to triumph in Paris, and demonstrate the strides he has made since suffering a horrifying ankle injury during his 2022 French Open semi-final against Rafael Nadal.
"It was not 100% guaranteed that I would be back at this level," he added. "So, to win this title here in Paris means the world to me, and I'm sure it means everything to those in my box, because they have done so much for me."
Data Debrief: Zverev surpasses Medvedev and matches Sinner
Runner-up to Daniil Medvedev in 2020, Zverev went one better at the Accor Arena four years later, and will be seeded second at the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals.
The second German to win this event after Boris Becker, he surpassed Medvedev (six) with his seventh ATP Masters crown the outright most of any player born since the format's inception in 1990.
Zverev also matched world number one Jannik Sinner for the joint-most match wins in ATP Masters events this season with 28.
Tottenham 4-1 Aston Villa: Solanke at the double as Spurs come from behind once more
Dominic Solanke scored twice as Tottenham got back to winning ways in the Premier League, coming from behind to beat Aston Villa 4-1.
Spurs bounced back from last weekend's 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace, with four second-half goals turning the contest completely on its head at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Villa had broken the deadlock just after the half-hour mark when Morgan Rogers prodded home after Guglielmo Vicario parried John McGinn's deflected corner straight into his path.
However, Brennan Johnson levelled within four minutes of the restart, the Wales international turning in Heung-min Son's inviting cross at the far post.
The hosts then completed the turnaround in the final quarter of an hour, with Solanke rounding off two neat moves in the space of four minutes.
Substitute James Maddison put some gloss on the scoreline when he curled home a delightful stoppage-time free-kick, as Villa's seven-match unbeaten streak came to an abrupt end.
Data Debrief: Spurs come from behind once more
Tottenham fell behind as they conceded the opening goal of a Premier League home game for the 12th time in 2024, more than any other side.
However, they hit back as Solanke's brace made him the first Spurs player to score at least four goals across his first eight Premier League appearances for the club since Rafael van der Vaart in 2010-11.
The former Bournemouth forward has now scored more Premier League goals against Unai Emery's Villa than any other player, doing so four times in as many appearances against them.
Spurs have now won eight home Premier League games in 2024 after conceding the opening goal, matching Newcastle United in 2002 for the joint-most by a single team in a calendar year.
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