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On Wednesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced Team India’s squad for the upcoming Test series in South Africa. While naming the squad, the apex Indian board also announced Rohit Sharma as the full-time ODI skipper, replacing Virat Kohli, who will continue to lead the team in the whites.
Notably, Rohit had recently taken over full-time T20I captaincy from Kohli, who had stepped down at the end of India’s T20 World Cup campaign in November. In his first project as Team India’s T20I skipper, Rohit had led India in a 3-0 whitewash over New Zealand at home.
“The All-India Senior Selection Committee also decided to name Mr Rohit Sharma as the Captain of the ODI & T20I teams going forward,” tweeted BCCI.
The All-India Senior Selection Committee also decided to name Mr Rohit Sharma as the Captain of the ODI & T20I teams going forward.#TeamIndia | @ImRo45 pic.twitter.com/hcg92sPtCa
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 8, 2021
The three-match ODI series against South Africa starts on January 19 next year. The first two games will be played at Boland Park in Paarl, while Newlands Stadium shall host the third and last match in Cape Town.
Rohit replaces Ajinkya Rahane as Test vice-captain
Further, Rohit has also been promoted as the vice-captain in the longest format, starting with the South Africa tour. Under-fire senior batter Ajinkya Rahane has been removed from the vice-captaincy role but has managed to save his place in the red-ball squad.
Hanuma Vihari, who was not picked for the New Zealand series, has been recalled after his impressive outings during the India A Tour against South Africa A. Opener KL Rahul has also returned in the whites. Notably, Rahul was ruled out of the two-match Test leg against Black Caps on the eve of the Kanpur Test.
Mohammed Shami, Shardul Thakur and Jasprit Bumrah have been given rest. At the same time, Ravindra Jadeja, Shubman Gill, Axar Patel, and Rahul Chahar were not available for selection due to injuries and undergoing a rehabilitation process.
