India tour of South Africa: Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul return as India name full-strength squad for 2 Test series
India tour of South Africa: KL Rahul and Jasprit Bumrah returned to the Test fray as India named a strong 16-member squad in the red-ball format. India will be led by Rohit Sharma as the veteran batter returns after a short break post World Cup 2023.
by India Today Sports Desk · India TodayIn Short
- India announced their Test squad for South Africa tour
- Jasprit Bumrah and KL Rahul came back into the Test side
- Rohit Sharma is set to lead the 16-member squad
India announced their Test squad for the 2-match series against South Africa on Thursday, 30 November. India are touring South Africa in December for a three-format series. The team will play 3 T20Is, 3 ODIs, and 2 Test matches in the tour, which will last for a month.
India captain Rohit Sharma is set to lead the side in the World Test Championship once again and will be returning to play for the national team after a short break post-World Cup 2023. Alongside the two stalwarts, star India pacer Jasprit Bumrah will be returning to the Test side for the first time since July 2022. Wicket-keeper batter KL Rahul will also be back in the team for the first time since February 2023.
Both players have been away due to their respective injuries. While Bumrah has not played with the red-ball after captaining India against Ben Stokes' England, Rahul did not play after the 2nd Test match in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
India Test Squad for SA Tour
Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan (wk), KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Mohd. Shami*, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna.
IND vs SA Test Squad: Major Talking Points
- Jasprit Bumrah and KL Rahul return to red-ball cricket
- Ruturaj Gaikwad receives maiden Test call-up
- Mohammed Shami's presence subject to fitness
- India move on from Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane
India have never won a Test series against India and the Board of Control for Cricket in India have selected a well-balanced squad to turn that around. The Test squad has shown a clear indication of moving on from the veteran middle-order line-up, which had Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane.
Maiden Call-up For Gaikwad
India have called up Ruturaj Gaikwad for the first time in red-ball cricket, possibly as a backup for the middle-order which will have Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli. India have a lot of options in their hands in the top-order department, with captain Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal as well as Ishan Kishan being named in the 16-member squad. India have not made any changes to their spin department for the 2-match series with R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja set to continue.
Published By:
Kingshuk Kusari
Published On:
Nov 30, 2023