IND vs SA T20 Series – INDIA SA 1st T20: With franchise duties over, Team India stars will be back on national duty on Sunday evening. The 1st T20 against South Africa will be played on 9th June in Delhi. And before that, stand-in captain KL Rahul and head coach Rahul Dravid has to take 3 BIG-DECISIONS on Indian Playing XI for 1st GAME: Follow India vs South Africa Live Updates on InsideSport.IN.
- Hardik Pandya’s batting position
- KL Rahul Opening Partner
- To unleash Umran Malik or not in opening match?
IND vs SA T20 Series: Captain KL Rahul & coach Rahul Dravid must make 3 BIG selection DECISIONS for IND vs SA T20 series – Check out
1. Hardik Pandya’s batting position – Who will he be India’s finisher?
Hardik Pandya had an excellent IPL 2022 campaign. Not only did he lead his team, Gujarat Titans, to the trophy, but he also was their leading run-scorer. He scored 487 runs, but he predominantly batted as a number 4, if not number 3. However, in the Indian team, the top four selects themselves, with KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant likely to comprise the top-order.
In such a scenario, KL Rahul and Rahul Dravid will need to figure out the perfect batting position for Pandya. Regular captain Rohit Sharma and Dravid had rued in the past that India lacked a proper finisher and Hardik was the answer.
IND vs SA T20 Series: Captain KL Rahul & coach Rahul Dravid must make 3 BIG selection DECISIONS for IND vs SA T20 series – Check out
Ideally, they would want the all-rounder to play as a finisher, but it also has to be noted that he did not bat lower than number 4 in IPL 2022.
Furthermore, Dinesh Karthik’s return to Team India has made it more complicated. DK was recalled for his superb form as a finisher in IPL 2022. He batted at No 6 or No 7. With that in mind, he is likely to play the role of a finisher. But
2. Who will open will KL Rahul – Ishan Kishan or Ruturaj Gaikwad?
IND vs SA T20 Series: Captain KL Rahul & coach Rahul Dravid must make 3 BIG selection DECISIONS for IND vs SA T20 series – Check out
Another dilemma that the two Rahuls will face ahead of the first game is selecting the perfect opening partner for the skipper. India has two talented options in Ishan Kishan and Ruturaj Gaikwad, but the problem is, neither of them has looked in good touch recently. Gaikwad scored 368 runs in IPL 2022 at an average of 26.28 and a strike rate of 126.46.
Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan scored 418 runs at an average of 32.15 and a strike rate of 120.11. Despite his poor strike rate, Ishan Kishan is likely to get the nod for a left-right combination.
3. What will be India’s strongest bowling combination?
IND vs SA T20 Series: Captain KL Rahul & coach Rahul Dravid must make 3 BIG selection DECISIONS for IND vs SA T20 series – Check out
Finally, after the batting conundrums, we arrive at the final part of the jigsaw – the bowling combination. India has two fantastic spinners in Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, who will, like the top four, pick themselves. However, Rahul will need to figure out the best pace combination. He has five options – Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik.
Among them, Harshal Patel is the only bowler who both picked wickets and kept a good economy rate in IPL 2022. Besides him, we can club the other four into two categories. Umran Malik and Avesh Khan are two bowlers who did pick up a lot of wickets, but they also went for plenty of runs. On the other hand, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Arshdeep Singh did not get as many wickets, but they were very economical. Hence, it will be interesting to find out what team India rolls out.
IND vs SA T20 Series: Captain KL Rahul & coach Rahul Dravid must make 3 BIG selection DECISIONS for IND vs SA T20 series – Check out
IND vs SA Schedule
| South Africa tour of India, 2022 | ||||
| Sr. No. | Day | Date | Match | Venue |
| 1 | Thursday | 9th June | 1st T20I | Delhi |
| 2 | Sunday | 12th June | 2nd T20I | Cuttack |
| 3 | Tuesday | 14th June | 3rd T20I | Vizag |
| 4 | Friday | 17th June | 4th T20I | Rajkot |
| 5 | Sunday | 19th June | 5th T20I | Bengaluru |
IND vs SA Squads
India squad: KL Rahul (C), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Deepak Hooda, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (vice-captain, wk), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik.
South Africa squad: Temba Bavuma (C), Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Wayne Parnell, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Rassie van der Dussen and Marco Jansen.
IND vs SA T20 Series: Captain KL Rahul & coach Rahul Dravid must make 3 BIG selection DECISIONS for IND vs SA T20 series – Check out
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