Rahul Dropped, Shubman Gets Maiden Call-up As Squad For South Africa Tests Announced

The first Test will be played in Visakhapatnam from October 2 before the teams travel to Pune for the second Test from October 10. The final match will be played in Ranchi from October 19

The BCCI announced a 15-man Indian squad for the upcoming 3-match Test series against South Africa. The committee of selectors made some serious changes to the squad as they have dropped opener KL Rahul and roped in U-19 World Cup star Shubman Gill. Rahul’s dipping form became a big concern for the MSK Prasad & Co. They have already hinted that the board might consider Rohit Sharma to open the innings in the red-ball cricket as well. Rahul managed scores of 44, 38, 13 and 6 in two Tests against West Indies; he wasted opportunities to convert starts in the first Test in Antigua and didn't get starts in the next game in Jamaica. He hasn't managed a 50+ score since his 149 against England at the Oval some twelve innings back. On the other hand, Gill earned a maiden Test call-up following his stint in the recently concluded unofficial ODI series against South Africa A. He scored 90 and 5 in the first unofficial Test against South Africa A to boost his chances. In the bowling department, the spin trio of Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav remain intact. Umesh Yadav couldn’t make into the squad as the selectors opted to go with Bumrah, Shami and Ishant. Riddhima Saha continued to be a part of the side as a back-up wicketkeeper as Rishabh Pant remains the first choice. The first Test of the Gandhi-Mandela Trophy will be played in Visakhapatnam from October 2 before the teams travel to Pune for the second Test from October 10. The final match of the tour will be played in Ranchi from October 19. Here’s the squad: Virat Kohli (Capt), Mayank Agarwal, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill The committee also named the Board President's XI team for a three-day warm-up game to be played in Vizianagaram beginning September 26. Board President's XI: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Mayank Agarwal, Priyank Panchal, AR Easwaran, Karun Nair, Siddhesh Lad, KS Bharat (wicket-keeper), Jalaj Saxena, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Avesh Khan, Ishan Porel, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav.