Ramandeep Singh and Vijaykumar Vyshak earned maiden India call-ups on Friday as the BCCI announced squad for an upcoming T20I tour of South Africa. Pacer Mayank Yadav, who recently made his India debut during the T20I series against Bangladesh, has not been included in the squad for the trip to South Africa, owing to an injury. “Mayank Yadav and Shivam Dube were unavailable for selection owing to injuries,” the BCCI said in a release.

All-rounder Riyan Parag was also unavailable for selection. As per BCCI’s release, the is currently at The BCCI Centre of Excellence for long term resolution of his chronic right shoulder injury.

Suryakumar Yadav will continue to lead the side, while the BCCI didn’t name any designated vice-captain for the four-match series.

The series will get underway on November 8, while the final game will be on the 14th of November. The matches will be played in four different venues — Durban, Gqeberha, Centurion and Johannesburg, respectively.

There was no place in the squad for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, who is expected to lead India ‘A’ during their upcoming tour of Australia.

Meanwhile, Ramandeep’s inclusion comes on the back of his stellar performance in the ongoing ACC T20 Men’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup. However, India’s campaign came to an end after a defeat to Afghanistan in the semi-finals.

Along with the T20I squad, the BCCI also named the Test squad for the Border-Gavaskar series against Australia, starting November 22. Three uncapped Test players Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana and Abhimanyu Easwaran are in line for their long-format debut. Since India are scheduled to play five Tests, the BCCI has named a big travelling contingent, also comprising of three reserve players.

India’s squad for 4 T20Is against South Africa: 

Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ramandeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Avesh Khan, Yash Dayal.

Shreyas Iyer failed to impress in his first match in the Duleep Trophy 2024 as he was dismissed for 9 by Vijaykumar Vyshak during the clash between India C and India D at the Rural Development Trust Stadium in Anantapur on Thursday. Vyshak, who plays for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League (IPL), came up with a brilliant delivery that moved slightly outside the off stump and Iyer ended up edging it to wicket-keeper Abishek Porel behind the stumps. This was a letdown for India D skipper Shreyas Iyer who will be in contention for a spot in the Indian cricket team squad for the two-match Test series against Bangladesh starting September 19.

Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, and Prasidh Krishna, all three white-ball experts, will miss the first round of the Duleep Trophy.

Wicketkeeper batter Ishan Kishan has been ruled out of the first round of the Duleep Trophy, due to a groin injury sustained during the ongoing All-India Buchi Babu Tournament.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Medical Team is closely monitoring his condition and working towards ensuring a swift recovery.

The Men’s Selection Committee has named Sanju Samson as Kishan’s replacement in the India D squad, the BCCI informed in a statement.

Batter Suryakumar Yadav will also be unavailable for the first Duleep Trophy round after suffering a right thumb sprain while fielding in the All-India Buchi Babu Tournament.

The BCCI Medical Team is continuing to assess his injury, and a further evaluation next week will determine his availability for the second round.

Fast bowler Prasidh Krishna will miss the upcoming event as he is nearing completion of his rehab following surgery for his left quadriceps tendon and will miss the first-round game of the Duleep Trophy.

Teams:

India C (Playing XI): Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Sai Sudharsan, Rajat Patidar, Abishek Porel(w), Baba Indrajith, Aryan Juyal, Hrithik Shokeen, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Manav Suthar, Anshul Kamboj, Himanshu Chauhan.

India D (Playing XI): Devdutt Padikkal, Yash Dubey, Ricky Bhui, Shreyas Iyer(c), Srikar Bharat, Atharva Taide(w), Axar Patel, Saransh Jain, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Aditya Thakare.

(With IANS inputs)