The disappointment of another Test whitewash won’t go away easily. Luckily, the upcoming India vs South Africa ODI series will help ease some pain. Still, some issues will persist as we move from red-ball to white-ball cricket.

Shubman Gill, India’s Test and ODI captain, won’t be taking part in the 3-match series. Shreyas Iyer remains unavailable as well. Both with injuries. The Indian management will have to find apt replacements for them.

Jaiswal to replace Gill as India’s opener

Yashasvi Jaiswal was the backup opener in Australia. He’s expected to bat alongside Rohit Sharma for only the second time in his ODI career. The talented 23-year-old has played just one 50-over match for India, and Gill’s injury might act as a blessing in disguise for him. Already a Test mainstay, Jaiswal will try to make his case as an ODI opener.

However, this would mean Ruturaj Gaikwad won’t get a chance. Having last played an ODI in December, the opener from Maharashtra has returned to the side but will probably warm the bench.

Tilak Varma at number four?

It doesn’t look like Tilak Varma will make the cut. Interim captain KL Rahul has confirmed that he’ll bat at number six. He also assured that Rishabh Pant will find a spot and will keep the wickets. Whether he’ll take over Shreyas Iyer’s position, he didn’t say. This indicates that Tilak is likely to warm the bench.

It’s expected that Ravindra Jadeja will be promoted to number five in Axar Patel’s absence. If that happens, only one spot remains for Pant to play at, number four. If we assume that Jadeja will continue to bat lower down the order, it won’t be a shock to see either Nitish Kumar Reddy or Washington Sundar get promoted to that vacant number five.

There’s no doubt Tilak’s a deserving candidate. He was appointed India A captain recently and features in the T20I team, unlike Pant. But the management seems determined to play the latter.

Wholesome changes in bowling

India has dropped or rested Axar and Mohammed Siraj from the ODI squad after the Australia tour. The former will be replaced by Jadeja, who didn’t play in Australia, while Arshdeep Singh will come in for the latter. The left-arm pacer did play two matches in Australia and will become the lead pacer in ODIs for the first time.

Harshit Rana was perhaps India’s best bowler in Australia and will play over Prasidh Krishna. One can’t forget that he’s got batting ability, something most Indian tailenders don’t have.

Predicted India Playing XI for 1st South Africa ODI

Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Washington Sundar, KL Rahul, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh

Bench: Tilak Varma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Prasidh Krishna