The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the Indian squad for the three T20s and first three ODIs for the upcoming series against South Africa.
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Gurkeerat was rewarded for his excellent performances for the India A team as he was named in the 15-man squad for the first three ODIs and will fight it out with Binny for the all-rounder’s spot.
While it was nothing more than an extended practice session, Dhoni again wielded the willow in a charity game two days back at the Oval in London and scored 38 runs in a winning cause.
Contrary to recent media reports, Mahendra Singh Dhoni will continue to captain the side in both the shorter formats, while senior off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was retained in the T20 squad for his consistent show during the tour of Zimbabwe. As expected, no major changes were made in the squad apart from the inclusions of Karnataka seamer Sreenath Aravind and Punjab allrounder Gurkeerat Singh Mann in India’s T20 and ODI line-up respectively.
Opener Shikhar Dhawan, recuperating from a hand fracture he suffered during the first Test against Sri Lanka last month, was also included in both the squads. Shami last played for India during the 2015 World Cup and been sidelined from all competitive cricket since.
Umesh Yadav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have been included in the ODI squad only as Mohit Sharma gets picked up in both the sides. “The “A” series has gone well and we as selectors are happy that a lot of exciting youngsters are coming up”, said Patil. We did discuss Ishant Sharma also. The 72-day long vitality sapping visit includes three T20 internationals, five ODIs and four Test matches.
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The 15-member team for the T20 series comprises MS Dhoni (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Mohit Sharma, Rohit Sharma, R Ashwin, Stuart Binny, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Axar Patel, S Aravind, Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra.
