NEW DELHI: Senior batsman KL Rahul has been appointed India’s captain for the upcoming three-match ODI series against South Africa, while seasoned all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja makes his return to the white-ball squad after eight months on the sidelines.

Rahul steps into the leadership role after regular skipper Shubman Gill was ruled out of the series, having suffered a neck injury during the first Test in Kolkata.

The decision to hand Rahul the captaincy has been made with a short-term focus, specifically for the South Africa assignment.

“Rahul’s captaincy is one off and should be seen in isolation. Rishabh (Pant) wasn’t considered as he has played only one ODI game in the last one year. The selectors expect that Shubman Gill’s neck injury will heal and he will be back against New Zealand (3 ODIs in January 2026),” a BCCI source told PTI on condition of anonymity.

Pant has not featured in ODIs for over a year, with his last appearance coming in August 2024 against Sri Lanka. During this period, the team management continued to back KL Rahul as the first-choice wicketkeeper.

The selectors have included three wicketkeeping options in the squad for the IND vs SA ODIs – KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant and Dhruv Jurel. This opens up the possibility of Rahul featuring solely as a specialist batter, with Pant taking over the wicketkeeping duties.

The series is set to start on November 30 in Ranchi, with the second ODI scheduled for December 3 in Raipur and the final match to be played in Visakhapatnam on December 6.

Bumrah, Siraj, Axar rested

Axar Patel, who was a part of India’s recent white ball tour to Australia, was rested from the ODIs against the Proteas. The 31-year-old was also a part of the four-pronged spin attack that India fielded against South Africa in the Eden Gardens Test along with Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar and Jadeja.

Both Kuldeep and Sundar have been included in the one-day squad.

However, premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah needs to wait for sometime for his ODI return after donning the blue jersey in the 2023 World Cup final against Australia in Ahmedabad.

The 31-year-old is currently playing in the Test series against South Africa and has been accorded a rest as per his workload management plan.

Bumrah, though, played in the five-match T20I series against Australia, and he was also a part of the national team that participated in the Asia Cup in Dubai, the two-match home Test series against the West Indies.

Siraj, who played against Australia in the away ODI series, was also given rest after playing two Tests against the Proteas in Kolkata and Guwahati.

Yashasvi Jaiswal might just get a chance to add to his lone one-day appearance in the upcoming series, while partnering former captain Rohit Sharma.

Jaiswal was a part of the ODI squad against Australia but did not get a chance to play as Gill opened with Rohit.

Virat Kohli, who has retired from Tests and T20Is, has also been named in the squad and the home fans can once again witness outings from the fabled RoKo combine.