(Cricket news) India have named the 18 man squad for the 3 Tests in South Africa. The 1st Test starts boxing day- 26th December at SuperSport Park, Centurion. South Africa is the only place India has never won a Test series. Virat Kohli and Rahul Dravid would like to tick off that box and there is no better time to do so. The Indian red ball team is at the peak of its powers right now, having already conquered Australia and England this year.
Squad: Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma (VC), KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (WK), Wriddhiman Saha (WK), R Ashwin, Jayant Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj.
Standby Players: Navdeep Saini, Saurabh Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Arzan Nagwaswalla.
The squad doesn't have any controversial snubs as such. Hanuma Vihari has returned to the side on the back of a decent South Africa tour with India A. Shreyas Iyer and Jayant Yadav keep their place in the side. Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, KL Rahul and Shardul Thakur are back in the team as expected.
Also read: I am 100% committed to doing my best at the Vijay Hazare Trophy – Indian cricketer Yash Nahar
The big call is stripping Ajinkya Rahane off the vice captaincy. The decision comes just 11 months after Rahane led India to a legendary series win in Australia. The decision has to do with Rahane's form rather than his role as vice captain. The decision is a clear indication the South Africa series will be Rahane's last chance and a failure would lead to him being dropped from the side. Rohit Sharma is more than capable of being vice captain. Kohli and Rohit were skipper and deputy in white ball cricket for a long time.
BCCI also announced that Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Shubman Gill were unavailable for selection because of injuries. The absence of Jadeja and his like for like replacement is a big blow. Washington Sundar is fit and playing the Vijay Hazare trophy but still hasn't been selected. It leaves India with Jayant Yadav, Shardul Thakur and Ravichandran Ashwin as bowlers who can bat. India are clearly missing a proper all-rounder in the side which means they will almost certainly have to go for 7 pure batters and 4 bowling options.
India will be looking to find the right combination from the get go which is easier said than done. Ashwin's place is pretty much guaranteed at this point. Whether Mayank Agarwal is rewarded for his ton in Mumbai or do India go back to Rohit and Rahul up top remains to be seen. Vihari and Iyer will be up against each other if a pure batter's place opens up. At this moment in time Bumrah, Shami and Siraj look like India's strongest pace trio.
