CSA announces South Africa ODI squad for India series; Faf du Plessis returns

South Africa have recalled the former skipper Faf du Plessis for the three-match ODI series against India which is set to commence on March 12. This will be his first 50-over series since the debacle in the World Cup last year in England. His future was in doubt after the selectors had left him out for England ODIs at home. Quinton de Kock continues to lead the side after Du Plessis duly resigned from the captaincy across all formats ahead of the Australia T20Is.

South Africa are currently involved in the three-match ODI series at home against South Africa. They are leading the series after the opening game thanks to maiden century from Heinrich Klaasen which propelled them to 291 batting first at the Boland Park. The squad playing against Australia is largely the same barring a couple of changes.

Janneman Malan who bagged a golden duck on his ODI debut has made way for Faf du Plessis in the squad. Meanwhile, the chinaman bowler Tabraiz Shamsi is set to miss the series as he and his Khadija are expecting their first child during the tour according to Sport24.

George Linde earns a well-deserved call-up

George Linde has earned a call-up the One-Day side to replace Shamsi and might well make his ODI debut. He was one of the very few positives for South Africa during the Test series last year in India. He had scored 64 runs across two innings in the only Test he played and went on to pick four wickets in the match as well with his left-arm spin.

Linde has been impressive in the ongoing domestic One-Day Cup scoring 159 in seven innings at a strike-rate of 116.91 and an average of almost 32 playing for Cape Cobras. He has also scalped seven wickets conceding runs at an economy of 5.71. Another notable name missing from the squad is of Kagiso Rabada who has been ruled out of the series due to a groin strain.

“It is exciting to see the amount of competition for spots that we have within the team and in the franchises, it’s a good headache for us as selectors to have. We are satisfied with our picks for what will certainly be a challenging tour of India. We saw some promising performances last year from the T20 squad that travelled there and we wanted to give a player like George Linde another crack at the conditions which seemed to really suit him.

“We are also particularly pleased with the balance of youth and experience that we have achieved while our young leadership group continues to establish itself. We are looking forward to some good performances in this relatively short tour,” the selector Linda Zondi said.

South Africa ODI squad for India ODIs: Quinton de Kock (captain), Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, Faf du Plessis, Kyle Verreynne, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Jon-Jon Smuts, Andile Phehlukwayo, Lungi Ngidi, Lutho Sipamla, Beuran Hendricks, Anrich Nortje, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj.