With the curtains finally drawing on what has been a long and successful home season for the Indian cricket team, in which they laid to waste whichever opposition chose to set foot in their backyard, it is time to look at some of the tougher battles that lie ahead.
India travel to South Africa in what will be the first of their three major overseas assignments next year, where they would engage in three Tests, as many T20Is and six one-dayers. For India captain Virat Kohli, who took a break during the limited-overs leg of Sri Lanka's recently-concluded tour, this will perhaps be the first big challenge outside the comfort of subcontinental tracks as the full-time leader of the team.
This will be India's first major overseas assignment since the marathon 2014-15 tour of Australia. Reuters
The Test squad announced for the tour had one major surprise — that of Jasprit Bumrah being called up as the fifth seamer in the touring party alongside Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav and all-rounder Hardik Pandya. Bumrah has been one of the most consistent figures in limited overs for the 'Men in Blue', and a call-up in the longest format was long overdue.
India also announced their ODI squad, which once again confirmed Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja's exclusion from the shorter formats. Shardul Thakur earned a second call-up, while Kedar Jadhav was brought back into the squad. Among the notable exclusions was KL Rahul, who did not figure in the MSK Prasad-led selection panel's scheme of things.
The Proteas, who recently blanked Bangladesh across formats at home, will be raring to tame the No 1 Test side in the world. What will boost their spirits ahead of the gruelling series starting on 5 January will be the likely return of stars AB de Villiers and Dale Steyn in whites; the latter not having played international cricket for more than a year now.
Here's a detailed look at India's itinerary in the southern African nation:
Full schedule and time:
1st Test: 5-9 January, Cape Town, 2 pm IST.
2nd Test: 13-17 January, Centurion, 1.30 pm IST.
3rd Test: 24-28 January, Johannesburg, 1.30 pm IST.
1st ODI: 1 February, Durban, 4.30 pm IST.
2nd ODI: 4 February, Centurion, 1.30 pm IST
3rd ODI: 7 February, Cape Town, 4.30 pm IST
4th ODI: 10 February, Johannesburg, 4.30 pm IST
5th ODI: 13 February, Port Elizabeth, 4.30 pm IST
6th ODI: 16 February, Centurion, 4.30 pm IST
1st T20I: 18 February, Johannesburg, 6 pm IST.
2nd T20I: 21 February, Centurion, 9.30 pm IST.
3rd T20I: 24 February, Cape Town, 9.30 pm IST.
Where to watch: All matches will be telecast on the Sony Entertainment Television (SET) network. One can also watch the matches online on Sony Liv, SET's digital streaming property.
Published Date: Dec 25, 2017
| Updated Date: Dec 25, 2017
With the curtains finally drawing on what has been a long and successful home season for the Indian cricket team, in which they laid to waste whichever opposition chose to set foot in their backyard, it is time to look at some of the tougher battles that lie ahead.
India travel to South Africa in what will be the first of their three major overseas assignments next year, where they would engage in three Tests, as many T20Is and six one-dayers. For India captain Virat Kohli, who took a break during the limited-overs leg of Sri Lanka's recently-concluded tour, this will perhaps be the first big challenge outside the comfort of subcontinental tracks as the full-time leader of the team.
This will be India's first major overseas assignment since the marathon 2014-15 tour of Australia. Reuters
The Test squad announced for the tour had one major surprise — that of Jasprit Bumrah being called up as the fifth seamer in the touring party alongside Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav and all-rounder Hardik Pandya. Bumrah has been one of the most consistent figures in limited overs for the 'Men in Blue', and a call-up in the longest format was long overdue.
India also announced their ODI squad, which once again confirmed Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja's exclusion from the shorter formats. Shardul Thakur earned a second call-up, while Kedar Jadhav was brought back into the squad. Among the notable exclusions was KL Rahul, who did not figure in the MSK Prasad-led selection panel's scheme of things.
The Proteas, who recently blanked Bangladesh across formats at home, will be raring to tame the No 1 Test side in the world. What will boost their spirits ahead of the gruelling series starting on 5 January will be the likely return of stars AB de Villiers and Dale Steyn in whites; the latter not having played international cricket for more than a year now.
Here's a detailed look at India's itinerary in the southern African nation:
Full schedule and time:
1st Test: 5-9 January, Cape Town, 2 pm IST.
2nd Test: 13-17 January, Centurion, 1.30 pm IST.
3rd Test: 24-28 January, Johannesburg, 1.30 pm IST.
1st ODI: 1 February, Durban, 4.30 pm IST.
2nd ODI: 4 February, Centurion, 1.30 pm IST
3rd ODI: 7 February, Cape Town, 4.30 pm IST
4th ODI: 10 February, Johannesburg, 4.30 pm IST
5th ODI: 13 February, Port Elizabeth, 4.30 pm IST
6th ODI: 16 February, Centurion, 4.30 pm IST
1st T20I: 18 February, Johannesburg, 6 pm IST.
2nd T20I: 21 February, Centurion, 9.30 pm IST.
3rd T20I: 24 February, Cape Town, 9.30 pm IST.
Where to watch: All matches will be telecast on the Sony Entertainment Television (SET) network. One can also watch the matches online on Sony Liv, SET's digital streaming property.
Published Date:Dec 25, 2017
| Updated Date: Dec 25, 2017
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