Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has backed the inclusion of Nitish Kumar Reddy in India’s playing XI for the upcoming ODI series
against South Africa, starting November 30 in Ranchi as well. Pathan’s comments came after the announcement of the 15-member squad on Sunday, November 23, with Reddy retaining his place with Hardik Pandya absent due to injury.

Speaking in a video on his YouTube channel, Pathan said: “The biggest opportunity, I think, will be for Nitish Kumar Reddy. If he can cement his place, he has been brought in as a replacement for Hardik Pandya. Hardik Pandya will miss the series for India once again as he recovers from injury. That is why this is a great opportunity for Nitish Kumar Reddy. In my opinion, he should be played as the third fast bowler so that the batting lineup is longer and we can assess his capability. If you want to experiment, this is the right time because there may not be another opportunity later.”

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However, Irfan Pathan also stated that it would be a great opportunity for young pacers like Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, and Harshit
Rana to leave a mark in the absence of Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah as well.

He said: “The second big opportunity is for the fast bowlers. Arshdeep Singh has a great chance, and Prasidh Krishna also has a major opportunity to cement his place. With no Bumrah and Siraj, if they can prove themselves now, it will become much easier for them. Performing well against a strong team like South Africa will significantly raise their stock in the minds of the selectors and the team management.”

India’s squad for the South Africa ODI series:

Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul (C, WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Dhruv Jurel.