Senior batsman KL Rahul was chosen India’s captain while veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja rejoined the white-ball lineup after an eight-month break for the forthcoming three-match ODI series against South Africa on Sunday.
After regular captain Shubman Gill was sidelined for the series owing to a neck injury he suffered during the first Test match against South Africa in Kolkata, Rahul took over as team captain.
Rahul has been appointed captain with the short-term objective of the South Africa series in mind.
“Rahul’s captaincy is one off and should be seen in isolation. Rishabh (Pant) wasn’t considered as he has played only one ODI game in the last one year. The selectors expect that Shubman Gill’s neck injury will heal and he will be back against New Zealand (3 ODIs in January 2026),” a PTI report quoted a BCCI source as saying.
The series will start in Ranchi on November 30. Matches will thereafter take place in Raipur on December 3 and Visakhapatnam on December 6.
Axar Patel, a left-arm spin all-rounder, has been rested for this series, therefore Jadeja, whose last ODI appearance was against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy final in Dubai earlier in March, is back in the mix. Axar was rested from the ODIs against the Proteas after playing in India’s recent white ball tour to Australia.
Along with Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, and Jadeja, the 31-year-old was a member of India’s four-pronged spin attack against South Africa in the Eden Gardens Test. Sundar and Kuldeep are both part of the one-day team.
Premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who wore the blue jersey during the 2023 World Cup final against Australia in Ahmedabad, may have to wait a while to return to ODI cricket. In accordance with his workload management plan, the 31-year-old, who is presently participating in the Test series against South Africa, has been given a break.
However, Bumrah featured in the two-match home Test series against the West Indies, the five-match Twenty20 International series against Australia, and the national team that competed in the Asia Cup in Dubai.
After playing two Test matches against the Proteas in Kolkata and Guwahati, Siraj, who participated in the away ODI series against Australia, was also rested.
Alongside former captain Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal may be able to add to his one-day appearance in the forthcoming series. Despite being a member of the ODI team against Australia, Jaiswal did not get a chance to play since Gill opened with Rohit.
The home crowd will be able to see appearances from the legendary RoKo duo once more as Virat Kohli, who has retired from Tests and Twenty20 Internationals, has also been named in the team.
Following two strong performances for India A against South Africa A in the most recent unofficial ODI series in Rajkot, Ruturaj Gaikwad was also named by the selectors.
The 28-year-old scored 117, 68 not out, and 25 in three games. Since Gill and Shreyas Iyer, the original vice-captain, are both recuperating from their injuries, he has been drafted in. Gaikwad has participated in six ODIs to date, the most recent of which took place at Gqeberha in 2023 against South Africa.
All-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana will take care of the pace department.
India’s squad for South Africa ODIs: KL Rahul (Captain, w/k), Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rishabh Pant (w/k), Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Dhruv Jurel
