Tea before lunch? Know unique session timing for IND vs SA 2nd Test in Guwahati

subhradeep-choudhury — Thu, 30 Oct 2025 14:11:50 GMT

Know unique session timing for IND vs SA 2nd Test in Guwahati.

In a usual sequence of Test matches, lunch breaks are taken before Tea. But that won’t be the case for the second Test of the upcoming series against South Africa to be played at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati from November 22. Due to the early sunrise and sunset in the eastern part of the country, the timings of the red-ball clash have been tweaked for the smooth conduct of the game.

The first session of the five-day encounter between India and South Africa will be from 9 am to 11 am, followed by the Tea session from 11 am to 11:30 am. The second session will take place till 1:20 pm, after which the lunch break will be from 1:20 pm to 2 pm. The third and final session of the clash will be played till 4 pm, apart from the extra 30 minutes to complete the 90 overs of the scheduled day.

"The reason to have early Tea is that Guwahati witnesses early sunset, and there is an early start too. This will be the first time we have decided to change the Tea session, as time will be saved to get extra game time on the field.” The source was revealed as quoted by the Indian Express.

IND vs SA 2nd Test in Guwahati to begin 30 minutes earlier than traditional start

In normal circumstances, the Test matches begin at 9:30 in the morning in India and have 40 minutes of lunch at the start. The start time varies from one country to another, like England, which begins its Test matches at 11 am due to having long days in its summer. Most of the team follows their traditional lunch-tea breaks during the red-ball contests.

Both Cricket South Africa (CSA) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have mutually decided to change the timing. In the past, the Indian board changed its session periods in the Ranji Trophy games to factor in the early sunset situation.

It’s expected to be the same situation with the lights during the opening Test at the Eden Gardens. However, no change in timing has been made for the opener.