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Team India's opening batter Ruturaj Gaikwad misses out on the third and final ODI against South Africa due to an injury to his finger.
Gaikwad was dealing with illness in the T20I series and returned to the playing XI for the ODI rubber, with several senior players being rested. He was dismissed for five runs in the series opener in Johannesburg after being trapped in front by Wiaan Mulder. The right-handed batter could score only four runs in Team India's loss in the second ODI before being dismissed by Nandre Burger.
Team India skipper KL Rahul mentioned during the toss that Gaikwad is dealing with an issue with his finger and will not partake in the match at Boland Park in Paarl.
"This looks like a much better wicket than the previous two, hopefully, we can get plenty of runs on the board. Two changes - Rajat Patidar makes his ODI debut, Rutu misses out after doing some damage to his finger. Also, Kuldeep gets a rest and Yuzi Chahal comes in," KL Rahul said of the team combination after losing the toss.
The Board of Cricket for India (BCCI) also issued an update regarding the injury.
"Ruturaj Gaikwad hasn't fully recovered from the blow he sustained to his ring finger while fielding in the second ODI. He remains under the supervision of the BCCI Medical Team," the BCCI statement read
It is to be noted that Gaikwad is part of the Test squad too. The extent of his injury remains to be seen, and it will determine whether he can be fit in time for the series beginning on December 26. Should he fail to recover in time, the BCCI is likely to bring in a replacement player.
Who will open the batting with Sai Sudharsan in the third ODI in the absence of Ruturaj Gaikwad?
Team India have a plethora of options, but none like-to-like when it comes to replacing Ruturaj Gaikwad at the top of the order.
The team can consider putting debutant Rajat Patidar straight in against the new ball. The right-handed batter has been in prolific touch, and although he generally bats in the middle order, he did score a quickfire 70 while opening the batting in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Other unconventional options are in the form of Sanju Samson and Washington Sundar. Samson has been well short of runs, and a promotion up the order, albeit temporary, might be the spark he needs.
Sundar, on the other hand, opened the batting for India in the third ODI against Australia in Rajkot.
Who will win the ODI series between India and South Africa? Let us know what you think.
