Rishabh Pant is team India’s new skipper. On Thursday, India will face Temba Bavuma’s South African cricket squad in the opening T20I of a five-match series at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. India was hit by injury a day before the series opener when skipper KL Rahul and spinner Kuldeep Yadav were ruled out of the series. Pant has been chosen captain, with Hardik Pandya as his deputy.
All eyes will be on Umran Malik and Arshdeep Singh, India’s emerging pace duo. Following an impressive IPL season, both received their first call-up to Team India. It is reported that during the practice session, Umran Malik bowled at a speed of 163.7 kmph. At least one of them is anticipated to play in today’s game. Even though Umran is the buzz of the town, head coach Rahul Dravid has intimated that Singh would play today.
The other two pacers are expected to be Bhuvnenshwar Kumar and Avesh Khan. Kumar can bowl in the powerplay, and Khan can handle the middle overs. Singh is recognised for his ability to bowl yorkers at will. On paper, India’s fast bowling attack appears to be rather strong.
With their spin, Yuzvendra Chahal and Axar Patel will hold the fort in the middle overs. Chahal and Axar bowled incredibly well in the IPL 2022 and will try to do so again.
In terms of batting, India’s new finishers for this series are Hardik Pandya and Dinesh Karthik, while Shreyas Iyer and skipper Rishabh Pant will bat at three and four. With the new left-right combination team India’s opening batsmen will be Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan.
Full Squads:
India Squad: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Yuzvendra Chahal, Deepak Hooda, Venkatesh Iyer, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Umran Malik
South Africa Squad: Quinton de Kock(w), Temba Bavuma(c), Reeza Hendricks, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi, Wayne Parnell, Lungi Ngidi, Heinrich Klaasen, Marco Jansen, Tristan Stubbs
Read Also: IND Vs SA: KL Rahul Ruled Out Of T20I Series; Rishabh Pant To Lead Indian Squad
