India Squads for South Africa ODIs, Highlights: KL Rahul named captain, Ravindra Jadeja makes return

KL Rahul has scored 3,092 runs in 88 matches , so far, at an average of 48.31 and a strike rate of 88.41.

Ravindra Jadeja has been recalled to India’s ODI team for the upcoming South Africa series. The star all-rounder last played an ODI during the 2025 Champions Trophy and was omitted from the recent Australia series, sparking speculation about his future in the format. His inclusion reaffirms that the 36-year-old remains in contention for the 2027 ODI World Cup.

Matches played: Ruturaj - 6; Tilak - 4

Runs scored: Ruturaj - 115; Tilak - 68

Highest score: Ruturaj - 71; Tilak - 52

50s: Ruturaj - 1; Tilak - 1

Rishabh Pant will be making a return to the ODIs after last playing the format for India in August 2024.

Ruturaj Gaikwad and Tilak Varma have been recalled to India’s ODI team. Gaikwad will serve as reserve opener behind Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal. Both players last featured in ODIs against South Africa in December 2023, marking a near two-year absence.

India have revealed a 15-member squad with four notable changes. Along with regular ODI captain Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer have also been left out due to injury concerns. Gill is currently nursing a neck injury, while Iyer continues to recover from a spleen laceration sustained during the recent ODI series against Australia.

In addition, all-rounder Axar Patel and pace bowler Mohammed Siraj, who travelled with the team for the Australia leg, have also been omitted from the refreshed unit.

Team India's squad for the ODI series against South Africa has been announced. KL Rahul will lead the team in Shubman Gill's absence while Yashasvi Jaiswal returns as the opener.

Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul (C & WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Dhruv Jurel

Shubman Gill suffered a neck injury. He has travelled to Mumbai for treatment and has been advised to rest. However, he is expected to recover before the T20I series, which starts on 9 December. Another medical evaluation is planned next week.

“Unfortunately, Gill will not be available for selection for the three ODIs vs South Africa. He has been advised to get more rest by the specialists and continues to be monitored by the BCCI medical team," a BCCI insider told The Times of India.

India played its last ODI on October 25. The Men in Blue played against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). Thanks to Rohit Sharma, India won the match by 9 wickets. This was the playing XI:

Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (C), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (Wk), Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj.

T20I squad: Aiden Markram, Ottneil Baartman, Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Quinton de Kock, Tony de Zorzi, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, George Linde, Kwena Maphaka, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Tristan Stubbs.

ODI squad: Temba Bavuma (captain), Ottneil Baartman, Corbin Bosch, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, Quinton de Kock, Tony de Zorzi, Rubin Hermann, Keshav Maharaj, Marco Jansen, Aiden Markram, Lungi Ngidi, Ryan Rickelton, Prenelan Subrayen.

With no Shubman Gill, will the BCCI give a chance to Yashasvi Jaiswal to spread his wings at the top with Rohit Sharma? Many consider ODIs to be Jaiswal's best format.

Assuming KL Rahul being named as captain, it is expected that Axar Patel might get the vice-captaincy in the ODIs. It must be noted that, Axar had led the Indian team earlier.

While the ODI series is a part of the preparation for the 2027 ODI World Cup, the T20I series will serve as a prep for the T20 World Cup in early in 2026. With Shubman Gill not in the side, will Sanju Samson will be included in the side? Last time when, Samson played against South Africa, he was unstoppable.

Besides, Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill, India are also unlikely to get the services of Hardik Pandya in the ODIs. Pandya might be eased back into the T20I side with some game time in Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy.

India will play three ODIs on November 3, December 3 and 6 in Ranchi, Raipur, Vizag respectively. The T20Is will be played in Cuttack, Mullanpur, Dharamsala, Lucknow and Ahmedabad on December 9, 11, 14, 17 and 19 respectively.

So far, KL Rahul has led India in 12 ODI games. The last time, Rahul captained India in ODIs was in South Africa on December 2023. In 12 games, India won eight under Rahul while long four.

With no Shubman Gill, there are a few captaincy options for India in ODIs - Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul. While Iyer is out for two months for a rib cage injury in Australia, lack of ODI game time in the past one year puts Pant out of consideration. That brings Rahul as the first-choice option for this role, who will also double up as a wicketkeeper.

While the T20I squad have Suryakumar Yadav as a their leader, the focus will be on ODI captaincy after Shubman Gill is likely to miss the services due to a neck injury.

The ODI series will see the return of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who will be playing on home soil for the first time since February. The duo have already quit Test and T20Is and are only available for ODIs.

Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the Indian squad announcement for the ODIs and T20Is against South Africa.