India will look to resolve the selection dilemma as they take on South Africa on Sunday in the first ODI of the three-match series, where Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be raring to giving it their best shot to cement their place in the 2027 World Cup squad.
Both Rohit and Virat now compete in just one international format, and with India scheduled to play only six ODIs in the next two months, three against South Africa and three versus New Zealand at home in January, the stakes are high for the two batting stalwarts.
Incidentally, it was at this very JSCA Stadium in Ranchi back in 2013 that Rohit Sharma was first acknowledged as a full-time opener, a defining moment that transformed not only his white-ball career but also India's 50-over outlook for years. More than a decade later, the 37-year-old walks into Ranchi again, this time seeking a different kind of revival as India attempt to rebuild after losing the home Test series.
For India, the ODI series comes in the shadow of the T20 World Cup at home next year. Head coach Gautam Gambhir, too, is under the scanner, though his job is not under threat as his contract runs till the 2027 World Cup. His tactical calls and team selections were questioned after the Test setback, his second major failure since taking charge.
In this series too, India's XI remain far from settled with several senior players missing. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj have been rested, while regular captain Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer are nursing injuries. Their absence not only weakens the line-up, but also forces stand-in skipper KL Rahul and head coach Gambhir to juggle roles and responsibilities.
The middle-order puzzle is even more perplexing. The management needs to decide whether to back Washington Sundar as the spin-bowling all-rounder or the hard-hitting Nitish Kumar Reddy. A more composed Tilak Varma could also be trusted with extended runs. It also remains to be seen if the playing XI can have Rishabh Pant if skipper KL Rahul keeps the wickets.
The coaching staff are keen to use these fixtures to evaluate fringe players, develop cross-format depth and maintain rhythm for senior pros without overloading them. India's approach needs to be pragmatic: allow the seniors to regain rhythm, give emerging batsmen extended runs, and use the bowling unit to assess death-overs combinations in Bumrah's absence.
South Africa, on the other hand, walk into the series with confidence after their Test series triumph, keen to extend the momentum in the white-ball format. The visitors, even without pace spearheads Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje, have a formidable bowling unit.
The absence of senior quicks opens the door for the likes of Gerald Coetzee, and Nandre Burger to shoulder responsibility in Indian conditions, while left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj will once again be central to South Africa's middle-overs control on surfaces expected to slow down.
The batting order is also quite solid with Quinton de Kock's experience at the top, captain Temba Bavuma's anchoring role and the dynamic middle-order presence of Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis and Tony de Zorzi.
THE SQUADS:
India: KL Rahul (C), Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Dhruv Jurel.
South Africa: Temba Bavuma (C), Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, Quinton de Kock, Marco Jansen, Tony de Zorzi, Rubin Hermann, Ottneil Baartman, Corbin Bosch, Matthew Breetzke, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Ryan Rickelton, Prenelan Subrayen.
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