New Delhi: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has named a 15-member squad for the upcoming five-match T20 International series against South Africa, marking the highly anticipated return of star all-rounder Hardik Pandya after an injury layoff spanning over two months. The series is set to commence on December 9.
Suryakumar Yadav will lead the side, while Shubman Gill has been designated as the vice-captain, contingent upon his fitness clearance from the BCCI CoE.
Gill’s Fitness in Focus
T20I vice-captain Shubman Gill has also been selected, despite recovering from a neck injury sustained during the first Test in Kolkata. His participation, however, remains subject to a mandatory fitness clearance from the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (COE). Should Gill fail to pass the fitness test, Sanju Samson, who has been opening for Kerala in the domestic T20s, is likely to step into the opening slot alongside Abhishek Sharma.
Omissions and Bowling Attack
The squad sees two notable omissions from the contingent that recently toured Australia for the T20I series: young batsman Rinku Singh and all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy. Reddy’s exclusion was largely anticipated following Pandya’s return to fitness. Rinku Singh’s international exposure since the Asia Cup final was limited to the washed-out final T20I against Australia in Brisbane.
The pace attack will be spearheaded by Jasprit Bumrah, supported by Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana. The spin department features Varun Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav, while the all-rounders list is robust, including Hardik, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, and Washington Sundar. Jitesh Sharma will serve as the second wicket-keeper alongside Sanju Samson.
The five T20Is will be played on December 9, 11, 14, 17, and 19 across Cuttack, New Chandigarh, Dharamsala, Lucknow, and Ahmedabad, respectively.
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