Former Indian opener names his India playing XI for South Africa match

India currently stands number two ranked ODI team going into the World Cup in England and Wales. The team, captained by vibrant Virat Kohli, is being perceived as one of the favourites to win the championship this time.

In 2019, team India has not been in the kind of form that they would have prefered, with losing few bilateral series, yet many experts and pundits believe that India can go all the way and stand victorious in the end.

However, the men in blue got a reality check ahead of the main draw as the Kiwis defeated them by six wickets in the first warm up game at the Oval in London. Nevertheless, team India made a great come back against Bangladesh at Sophia Gardens, winning the match by 95 runs. India will begin its campaign against South Africa on June 5.

The match will be played at the Rose Bowl in Southhampton and VVS Laxman, the former Indian cricketer, while commentating in the 2nd warm up game picked India’s playing eleven for that encounter. With no surprise that he went for Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli as the top three batsmen as the trio has made a vast contribution towards Indian cricket.

Laxman than picked KL Rahul, who scored a ton against Bangladesh and left Vijay Shankar, Who didn’t deliver as he was expected to for the number 4 slot. He slotted MS Dhoni at number five with high flying Hardik Pandya after that. Laxman opted for Ravindra Jadeja, who did well in the warm ups as the third spinner and all rounder in the team.

He picked Mohammed Shami along with Jasprit Bumrah as the two attacking pacers. Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal are the specialist spin bowling option. Both couldn’t make an impact against the Kiwis but came back with a decent performance against Bangladesh. The duo is expected to be key to team India in this World Cup.

Laxman’s Playing XI: Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (C), KL Rahul, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal