Rohit Sharma 'fit' to lead India against West Indies; Hardik could return: Report

India suffered a 3-0 whitewash against the Proteas in ODIs Rohit Sharma is reportedly "fit" and is ready to lead India in their upcoming home series against West Indies.

West Indies are touring India a six-match limited-overs series, starting Feb. 6.

Rohit recently missed India's tour of South Africa due to a hamstring injury and in his absence, KL Rahul led Team India in both One-Day International (ODI) series, which unfortunately the Men in Blue lost 3-0.

Last year after Virat Kohli stepped down as India's Twenty20 International (T20I), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) chose to remove him as the ODI skipper as well. Rohit was appointed India's new limited-overs captain. The series against West Indies will be Rohit's first assignment as India's official captain.

The BCCI is set to have the team selection meeting this week, where senior players such as Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ravichandran Ashwin, who had a forgettable 50-over series in South Africa, could come under the scanner, according to a report in PTI.

"Rohit is fit and available for the series against the West Indies. By the time, the West Indies series starts, it will be more than seven and half weeks of rehabilitation and recuperation for Rohit. He is already training in Mumbai and is expected to be in Bangalore for the fitness test and get a formal okay from the National Cricket Academy," a senior BCCI source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

Will Hardik Pandya return?

Following a poor show at the 2021 T20 World Cup, where India even failed to make it to the semis, one of the players who were dropped was Hardik Pandya.

Pandya has been bowling in the nets. Even though it is not clear whether he can bowl in full flow, he could make way into the Indian team, considering Venkatesh Iyer's inexperience at No. 6 and head coach Rahul Dravid's admission that the Mumbai Indians (MI) star was missed in the ODI series against the Proteas.

"You have to remember after the T20 World Cup, Hardik was dropped and not rested because of his fitness. The selectors wanted to send him a message after his underwhelming show at World T20 but he is too good a player to be kept out for long. If not against West Indies, then he will surely be back against Sri Lanka," the source added.

Meanwhile, the report further claimed that all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is also close to full fitness and could play in the series either against West Indies or the subsequent one against Sri Lanka.

Jasprit Bumrah could be rested

Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah could be rested for the upcoming series against West Indies. This is after he featured in all the six games India played in the Rainbow Nation. He sent down the highest number of overs (104.5 overs in Tests and 30 in ODIs).

It is understood that while Bhuvneshwar could face an axe, Ashwin could receive another series, considering the white-ball leg was his comeback in the ODIs. The likes of Avesh Khan and Harshal Patel could return to India's T20I squad.