3 major talking points for Team India ahead of T20I series versus South Africa

Team India will take on South Africa in a three-match T20I series, which starts with the first game at Kingsmead in Durban on Sunday, December 10. The subsequent matches will be played in St George's Park in Gqeberha and New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on December 12 and December 14, respectively.

With the T20 World Cup to be played in the United States and the West Indies in June 2024, the series against the Proteas assumes a lot of significance. After the series in South Africa, the Men in Blue will play only three T20Is against Afghanistan at home in January before heading into the ICC event. Of course, most of the Indian players will feature in the Indian Premier League (IPL) ahead of the World Cup.

With all-rounder Hardik Pandya still out due to injury, Suryakumar Yadav will continue to lead the T20I side in the series against the Proteas. As India prepare for their T20I battle with South Africa, we analyze three major talking points for the visitors.

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#1 Enough of chatter around Kohli-Rohit T20I comeback?

Virat Kohli (left) and Rohit Sharma were brilliant in the 2023 ODI World Cup. (Pic: Getty Images)

Ever since Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s brilliant performance in the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, many fans and critics have batted for the experienced duo to be included in the 2024 T20 World Cup squad.

While one understands that both players are legends of the game and there is no doubting their T20 ability, there is way too much ambiguity about their availability and whether they are indeed keen to play in the T20 World Cup.

Neither Kohli nor Rohit has played a T20I game for the Men in Blue since the debacle in the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final against England in Adelaide. Gradually, India started giving chances to several youngsters who have performed well in the IPL. Going back to Kohli and Rohit with just months left for the ICC event in the West Indies and the United States will be deviating from the original plan for sure.

The fact that both Kohli and Rohit are not part of the T20I series in South Africa is a fair indicator of what the players and the selectors are thinking. There have been varied reports about the possibility of the two making a T20I comeback for the World Cup.

For Indian cricket’s sake, though, the sooner the suspense around their T20I future comes to an end, the better it will be.

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#2 KL Rahul out of the equation in T20Is?

KL Rahul batting during the 2023 ODI World Cup. (Pic: Getty Images)

While there has been plenty of discussion around Kohli and Rohit’s T20I future, KL Rahul might also have slipped off the radar in the format. He too has not been picked in the T20I squad for the series against South Africa, with the likes of Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, and Jitesh Sharma retaining their respective places.

Many people might not have noticed, but just like Rohit and Kohli, Rahul has also not played any T20I match for India since the 2022 T20 World Cup. Rahul had an underwhelming T20 World Cup in Australia, although, he did get a couple of half-centuries.

Having said that, he has an excellent record for India in the T20I format. In 72 matches, he has smashed 2265 runs at an average of 37.75 and a strike rate of nearly 140 with two hundreds and 22 fifties. Rinku Singh and Jitesh have done a good job in the finishing role, but they lack experience.

At the same time, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is also part of the T20I set-up, while Pandya is also likely to return after he recovers from injury. It will be tough for Rahul to sneak back into the T20I squad it seems.

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#3 The opening conundrum

Ruturaj Gaikwad (right) with Yashasvi Jaiswal (Pic: AP)

When it comes to the opening department in T20Is, India are spoilt for choice. Shubman Gill was rested for the T20Is against Australia at home, but the Men in Blue did not miss him much as Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad came up with impressive performances. They have Ishan Kishan as well, who can also open if needed.

It will be a tough call for India to pick two of Gill, Jaiswal and Gaikwad. Neither of the three deserves to be left out of the playing XI. Gill has done an impressive job in the few T20Is he has played. In 11 matches, he has scored 304 runs at a strike rate of 146.85 with one hundred and one fifty.

Looking at Gaikwad’s numbers, he has 500 runs from 17 innings at a strike rate of 140.05 with one ton and three fifties. And if we take a look at Jaiswal’s T20I stats, he has 370 runs at a strike rate of 163.71, having hit one hundred and two fifties. There is not much to pick among the three although Jaiswal’s strike rate can be an X factor.

With only three T20Is, the Men in Blue do not even have an option to rotate their openers. It will be interesting to see how Suryakumar and co. deal with this conundrum.