The national selection panel led by MSK Prasad has announced two squads for the upcoming five-match One-Day series between India A and South Africa A. Manish Pandey and Shreyas Iyer will lead the teams in the first three and last two matches respectively.
All the matches are set to be played at the Sports Hub in Thiruvananthapuram as the five-match series starts on August 29.
The reliable opening pair of Shubman Gill and Ruturaj Gaikwad, who has recently registered scores of 85 and 99 against West Indies A, is set to continue at the top for the first three matches. Prashant Chopra, who recently made a hundred against Sri Lanka A, has been included as a replacement for Gaikwad for the last two one-dayers.
One of the notable pace inclusions has been Shardul Thakur, who last played a List A game against England Lions in January this year.
With Yuzvendra Chahal not being a part of India’s Test team in the immediate future has also been picked for South Africa A series.
Vijay Shankar, who returned from the middle of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 owing to his foot injury, has now been picked to play this one-day series. It means BCCI is looking at this five-match series as a gateway to Shankar’s return to international cricket.
Squads
India A team for 1st, 2nd and 3rd one-day:
Manish Pandey (Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Anmolpreet Singh, Ricky Bhui, Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Vijay Shankar, Shivam Dube, Krunal Pandya, Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Khaleel Ahmed, Nitish Rana.
India A team for 4th and 5th one-day:
Shreyas Iyer (Captain), Shubman Gill, Prashant Chopra, Anmolpreet Singh, Ricky Bhui, Sanju Samson (wicket-keeper), Nitish Rana, Vijay Shankar, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Rahul Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Tushar Deshpande, Ishan Porel.
Schedule
- August 29: 1st One-Day – Thiruvananthapuram
- August 31: 2nd One-Day – Thiruvananthapuram
- September 2: 3rd One-Day – Thiruvananthapuram
- September 4: 4th One-Day – Thiruvananthapuram
- September 6: 5th One-Day – Thiruvananthapuram