Indian Test squad for South Africa series to be announced on Monday

The Indian Test squad for the series against South Africa will be announced on Monday. India will travel to the rainbow nation at the end of the year and the Tests will be played from January 2 to January 28 next year. The BCCI’s acting secretary had a word with the selection committee on Monday. The selectors will have a happy headache, as all the three openers- Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay and KL Rahul are in good form.

Apart from that, spin twin- Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja are back to taking wickets, and the squad looks settled. The three Tests will be played at Newlands, Cape Town (Jan. 5 to 9), Centurion (Jan. 13-17) and The Wanderers, Johannesburg (Jan. 24-8).

Kohli’s availability a question

We will also get to know whether Virat Kohli will be available for the third Test and the limited overs series against Sri Lanka. India will play the Lankans in three ODIs and as many T20Is at the conclusion of the Test series. All-rounder Hardik Pandya, who was rested for the Tests in order to keep him fresh for the limited overs games, will be back for the ODIs and T20Is against Sri Lanka.

Vijay Shankar as a back-up?

Tamil Nadu all-rounder Vijay Shankar can be seen as a cover for the all-rounders but he is unlikely to feature in the 16-man squad for the South Africa tour. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who got married recently, is an automatic choice for the tough away tour.

The selection committee will also announce the Indian team for the third and final Test against Sri Lanka (New Delhi, Dec.2 to 6), three ODIs (Dharamsala, Dec. 10, Mohali, Dec. 13 and Visakhapatnam, Dec.17) and three Twenty20s (Cuttack, Dec.20, Indore, Dec.22 and Mumbai, Dec.24).

Kohli and Co. are treating the ongoing series against Sri Lanka as a dress rehearsal for the South Africa series, and it will something to see if they can thrash the power-packed Proteas, the way they have been toying around the Lankans.