(Cricket news) After defeating Australia in the T20I series 2-1, India now prepares to take on South Africa in a 3-match T20I series. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Hardik Pandya have been rested for the series while Arshdeep Singh is back after resting against Australia. Deepak Hooda is suffering from a back injury and is ruled out of the series while Mohammed Shami still hasn't recovered from Covid. Umesh Yadav will continue with the squad while Shahbaz Ahmed and Shreyas Iyer will also join the team. The focus will be on death bowling which has been a major issue as far as India are concerned.

Openers: KL Rahul & Rohit Sharma

The skipper and his deputy are the first names on the team sheet. The pair have just got back amongst the runs but are far from their best as an opening combination. India seems to have a concrete plan to make the most out of the powerplay. Rohit Sharma usually doesn't wait and starts attacking straight away while KL Rahul takes around 3-4 overs to get going. The big issue is that none of the openers have managed to stay till the end and play a big innings which may or may not be what the team wants but a big innings from Rahul and/or Rohit is long overdue. Virat Kohli, Suryakumar and Rishabh Pant could open the batting if necessary.

Middle order: Virat Kohli & Suryakumar Yadav

India are very secure with these two in the middle order. The pair are in good form and on top of that they always seem to put on important partnerships. SKY and Kohli compliment each other really well in the middle. In Australia this is going to be a very important partnership for India and South Africa will be a good test for both of them. Kohli always plays 2nd fiddle when Suryakumar is in his zone and then takes off again after SKY is dismissed. 

Wicket keepers: Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik

Hardik Pandya's absence will be a good opportunity for India to play both Karthik and Pant. It seems like India have already decided on Karthik as the first choice keeper but this series is a good opportunity for Pant. India will not have a proper 6th bowling option even though there is a slight possibility of Kohli bowling. It is a risk worth taking to give Pant some games and also because there is no real replacement. The other batting all-rounder Deepak Hooda is injured and it doesn't make sense to play Shahbaz Ahmed because he is not even in the mix.

All-rounder: Axar Patel

Axar has stepped up his game in the past couple of years and he is finally getting a long run in the team due to Ravindra Jadeja's injury. He was the Player of the Series against Australia for his incredible bowling performance. His batting is something which needs to be tested in this particular format which is why Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma might push him up the order. Shahbaz Ahmed is also in the squad who can play if required as can Ravichandran Ashwin.

Seamers: Harshal Patel, Jasprit Bumrah & Arshdeep Singh

In Bhuvneshwar Kumar's absence these 3 are obvious choices. It will be interesting to see how Rohit Sharma uses them because all 3 are death bowlers. Out of the 3 Bumrah is probably the best new ball option. There is a chance that the team management decides to play Umesh Yadav or Deepak Chahar just to get a proper new ball bowler into the side but the trio are in the T20 World Cup squad and need game time.

Spinner: Yuzvendra Chahal

Chahal had a decent series against Australia but he isn't picking up as many wickets as one would expect. The good thing is that he is keeping things tight most of the time. His form is going to be extremely crucial in the World Cup which makes this series very important for him. Ravichandran Ashwin is also an option but Chahal is the clear choice.

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