India will have the opportunity to move on from their humiliating Test series loss against South Africa as they focus on the upcoming ODI series against Temba Bavuma’s team.
In the pre-series press conference, bowling coach Morne Morkel underlined the “disappointing” performance in the Test series but reckoned the return of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will infuse “fresh energy into the squad.”
India will feel much better playing limited-overs internationals again after the disastrous Guwahati Test show, as the attention now moves to the two big superstars, Rohit and Kohli. Their unbeaten, match-winning knocks against Australia in Sydney last month remain fresh in the fans’ memory, who will hope for more such innings from the senior duo in the ODI series against South Africa and then against New Zealand.
Both teams lost their respective last ODI series: India to Australia and South Africa in Pakistan, both by 2-1. However, the Proteas had earlier won ODI series in England and Australia, highlighting their growing strength in the format.
When and where is the India vs South Africa 1st ODI?
The 1st ODI of the IND vs SA series will be played on Sunday, November 30, in Ranchi.
India, though, are far from their first-choice playing XI, as Shubman Gill (neck), Hardik Pandya (quadriceps), and Shreyas Iyer (lacerated spleen) will miss the IND vs SA ODI series due to injuries.
Who will be Rohit Sharma’s opening partner in India vs South Africa 1st ODI: Yashasvi Jaiswal or Ruturaj Gaikwad?
Gill’s absence will give an opportunity to Yashasvi Jaiswal, who made his ODI debut in February this year, to strengthen his position as the backup opener, while Ruturaj Gaikwad breathes down his neck after impressive performances against South Africa A.
Shreyas Iyer’s No. 4 spot could be occupied by either Tilak Varma or Rishabh Pant. Ravindra Jadeja, who was not part of the ODI series in Australia, returns to the ODI squad, replacing Axar Patel, who is surprisingly not included for the IND vs SA ODIs.
Apart from Jadeja, the second all-rounder will be one of Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar, although don’t count out coach Gautam Gambhir to pick both of them given his liking for playing multi-faceted players. Harshit Rana’s six wickets and 24* in Australia are likely to get him a place in the XI.
Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah are both rested, meaning that Arshdeep Singh will lead the pace attack, while Prasidh Krishna could be on the bench in the 1st ODI.
Gill and Gambhir didn’t show much confidence in Kuldeep Yadav on the white-ball trip to Australia, but at home, he is all but certain to play.
IND vs SA ODI Series: India Playing 11 For 1st ODI In Ranchi – Predicted
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma/Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul (C, wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar/Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh
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