India’s preparations for the first ODI against South Africa in Ranchi on November 30 are in full swing despite injuries to Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer. Bowling coach Morne Morkel provided an update on the fitness of the two star players.

Since both players have been sidelined for the entire three-match series, India will be missing their captain and vice-captain, putting extra attention on how quickly they regain full fitness before the next assignment.

Speaking to the media ahead of the first match, Morkel noted that recent updates about the duo have been positive. He mentioned that the team remains hopeful that both players will rejoin the squad once they regain complete fitness.

“I believe the medical staff is best suited to provide the official update. I did speak with Shubman a couple of days ago to check on him, and he told me his recovery is going well, which is great to hear. Shreyas has also begun his rehabilitation, which is another positive sign. We’re excited about having them back in the squad soon. The encouraging part is that they’re both healthy and have started working towards their return.”

With Gill and Iyer unavailable, India have restructured their squad for the ODI series. Tilak Varma and Ruturaj Gaikwad have been brought back into the mix. Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal are also in the squad to strengthen the batting lineup, while Ravindra Jadeja has been given another chance. Axar Patel, who played in the series against Australia, has been given a rest.

Gill injured his neck in the Kolkata Test while trying to play a sweep shot against Simon Harmer.

After a 0–2 loss to South Africa in the Test series, India now turn to the ODIs under KL Rahul’s captaincy.