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India have been dealt with a big blow ahead of South Africa tour. Rohit Sharma has been ruled out of the Test series in South Africa after getting injured in the practice session in Mumbai on December 12. Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has named India A skipper Priyank Panchal as replacement for the veteran.
The new Test vice-captain got injured in the nets as one of the deliveries from throwdown specialist Raghavendra led to his practice session cut-short.
“Rohit sustained a left hamstring injury during his training session here in Mumbai yesterday. He has been ruled out of the upcoming 3-match Test series against South Africa,” BCCI said in a statement.
Panchal played in two unofficial Tests against South Africa A. The Ahmedabad-born opener impressed in the first game with a 96-run knock. In the second game he looked out of touch as he scored 24 runs in first innings and bagged a duck in second.
The 31-year-old batter has over 7,000 runs in First-Class cricket from 163 innings at an average of 45.52 including 24 centuries and 25 half-centuries. His highest score in the format is an unbeaten 314.
On the other hand, Rohit has scored just 47 runs from eight innings. However, he hasn’t toured South Africa as an opener. Also, the 34-year-old has shown drastic improvement in the red-ball format in the past.
However, Panchal is unlikely to make his Test debut in South Africa as in-form Mayank Agarwal is likely to open alongside KL Rahul in Rohit's absence.
Indian team is scheduled to fly to South Africa on December 15. The members of the Test squad will board a chartered plane to Johannesburg. India will take on South Africa in the first Test at SuperSport Park, Centurion, starting December 26.
