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BPXI vs South Africa: Rohit Sharma to audition for openers role, Umesh Yadav looks to make statement
Rohit, who has been India's regular opener in the shorter formats of the game, will be looking to make a statement as an opener in red-ball cricket.
After drawing the T20I series against India, South Africa will kickstart their buildup to the Test series against India with a three-day warm-up game against Board President's (BP) XI led by Rohit Sharma starting Thursday.
Rohit, who has been India's regular opener in the shorter formats of the game, will be looking to make a statement as an opener in red-ball cricket after been allowed to cement his place in the Test side following KL Rahul's failure at top of the order.
The Hitman will also have the opportunity to bat with his opening partner Mayank Agarwal as the two will look to strike an understanding before the first Test starts in Visakhapatnam.
The 32-year-old will be challenged by Kagiso Rabada and company and will have a good taste of what he would be up against in the three-Test series which begins on October 2 in Visakhapatnam.
The tour game will also prove to be a good opportunity for Umesh Yadav who has been inducted into the squad as a replacement for the injured Jasprit Bumrah. Bumrah has suffered a minor stress fracture in his lower back and was ruled out on Tuesday.
Like Rohit and Umesh, Ajinkya Rahane and Hanuma Vihari, also feature in the game and testing their skill against quality red ball attack of South Africa, comprising Rabada, Vernon Philander and Lungi Ngidi.
Apart from Indian mainstays in the Test side youngsters like Shubman Gill, Abhimanyu Easwaran and Priyank Panchal will also present their case for the role of the opener. Karun Nair is another player aiming to score some big runs to find a place in the national side.
Meanwhile, for South Africa, regular skipper Faf du Plessis is back with the team and he would be raring to come out and make a statement after he was ignored for the T20I series as Cricket South Africa has decided to try Quinton de Kock in the shorter format.
Squads: Board President's XI: Rohit Sharma (captain), Mayank Agarwal, Priyank Panchal, AR Easwaran, Karun Nair, Siddhesh Lad, KS Bharat (wicket-keeper), Jalaj Saxena, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Avesh Khan, Ishan Porel, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav.
South Africa: Faf du Plessis (captain), Temba Bavuma (vc), Theunis de Bruyn, Quinton de Kock, Dean Elgar, Zubayr Hamza, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Senuran Muthusamy, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Vernon Philander, Dane Piedt, Kagiso Rabada, Rudi Second.
