SA vs IND: Ravi Ashwin in contention for three-match ODI series

Indian off-break bowler Ravi Ashwin is well and truly in the radar of the national selectors for the upcoming ODI series against South Africa. The veteran made his return to limited-overs in the T20 World Cup 2021 after a gap of four years and turned up with impactful performances. Although India failed to qualify beyond the Super 12, Ashwin managed to grab the limelight. The selection panel, led by Chetan Sharma, is mostly likely to pick the squad for the South Africa ODIs in the next two days and Ashwin has more than a decent chance of making the cut. Ashwin will fight with Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal for the spinner’s spot in the team. Earlier, Rohit Sharma, India’s skipper in ODIs and T20Is, said that Ashwin has loads of cricket left in him as far as the white-ball formats are concerned. Ravi Ashwin is definitely here to stay, said Sharma “Ashwin will give you that flexibility, you can use him in the powerplay or the middle over, so having a bowler like that – an all-rounder bowler I’d like to call – who can bowl anytime and anywhere in whatever situation, is always important,” Sharma was quoted as saying while speaking to journalist Boria Majumdar on ‘Backstage with Boria’. “You don’t want one-dimensional bowlers where you know he can only bowl outside powerplay, he cannot bowl in the death, can only bowl to right-handers, can only bowl to left-handers. The more options you have with bowlers the better, that’s what I felt,” he stated. “I thought he’d be a great addition, and I think he’s here to stay. He’s definitely here to stay,” Sharma added. For the ODI series, the selectors may even pick Venkatesh Iyer, who has come up the ranks since the second leg of IPL 2021. Iyer made his debut in the three-match T20I series against New Zealand. Ruturaj Gaikwad, who smashed four centuries in the Vijay Hazare Trophy is most likely to be picked as well. The selectors are also waiting for an update on Rohit Sharma, who won’t be a part of the three-match Test series, starting December 26 due a hamstring injury. The three ODIs will be played on January 19, January 21 and January 23.

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SA vs IND: Ravi Ashwin in contention for three-match ODI series

Ashwin made his comeback to white-ball cricket in the T20 World Cup after a gap of four years.

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