India National Cricket Team vs South Africa Cricket Team Match: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday announced the India A squad for the upcoming three-match one-day series against South Africa A. Young left-handed batter Tilak Varma was named captain of the India A team and Ruturaj Gaikwad will serve as vice-captain. Senior players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have not been considered for the series. There had been speculation that Rohit and Kohli might play in India A matches to gain match practice. The senior selection committee, however, has opted not to include them. The former captains are expected to return only for the three ODIs in South Africa before taking another break ahead of the New Zealand tour.
Rohit and Kohli returned to international cricket last month in a three-match ODI series against Australia. Kohli struggled in the first two games but scored a fifty in Sydney. Rohit scored 202 runs in three matches and won the Player of the Series award. The former captain also reclaimed the No. 1 ranking among ICC ODI batters.
The matches will be played at Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot on November 13, 16 and 19.
India A squad for the One-Day game against South Africa A: Tilak Varma (C), Ruturaj Gaikwad (VC), Prabhsimran Singh (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag, Ayush Badoni, Nishant Sindhu, Vipraj Nigam, Manav Suthar, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Khaleel Ahmed.
Meanwhile, Rishabh Pant has returned to India’s Test squad for the upcoming two-match series against South Africa starting November 14 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The second Test will be played in Guwahati. Pant replaces N. Jagadeesan after proving his fitness and form in India A’s win over South Africa A, where he scored a crucial 90-run innings. Shubman Gill will lead the Test side with Pant as vice-captain. Other members include KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj.
India’s Test squad: Shubman Gill (C), Rishabh Pant (WK) (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Akash Deep
