India squad for 3 T20Is against South Africa announced: No MS Dhoni; Hardik Pandya returns

The BCCI has announced India's 15-member squad for the upcoming T20I series against South Africa. While Virat Kohli will continue to lead the team, Rohit Sharma will play his deputy.

The big-name to miss out from the list is that of MS Dhoni. The wicketkeeper-batsman had reportedly made himself unavailable for the selection. Young Rishabh Pant will once again take the gloves behind the stumps.

After being rested for the T20I series against West Indies, all-rounder Hardik Pandya makes a comeback into the squad while the selectors have decided to rest Jasprit Bumrah yet again. Senior paceman Bhuvneshwar Kumar too has missed out on being selected for the series.

The likes of Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Rahul Chahar, Navdeep Saini, and Khaleel Ahmed have been persisted with, thanks to their impressive performances on the Carribean tour. Spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, who were not a part of the T20 squad that played the Windies, continue to face the axe.

India will take on South Africa in a 3 match T20I series starting from 15 September at Dharamsala. The second T20I will be played in Mohali on 18 September while the final one is scheduled to take place in Bengaluru on 22 September. The teams will then lock horns in a 3 match Test series starting from 2 October.

India's squad for 3 T20Is against South Africa: Virat Kohli(Captain), Rohit Sharma (Vice-Captain), KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Krunal Pandya, Washington Sundar, Rahul Chahar, Khaleel Ahmed, Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini