While Ishan Kishan has done well so far, Ruturaj Gaikwad (23, 1) has pulled the team down with questions being raised over his technique against quality pacers and his ability to force the pace early on.
Comeback man Heinrich Klaasen followed Rassie Van der Dussen's suit in turning out to be an unlikely hero with a career-best 81 as South Africa once again outwitted India by four wickets on a tricky pitch to take a 2-0 lead in the five-match T20I series.
IMAGES from the 1st T20I played between India and South Africa in New Delhi on Thursday.
Du Plessis also put on a record seventh wicket stand against Sri Lanka of 133 with Keshav Maharaj (73), who went to his highest Test score before he was the last batsman out.
Sri Lanka off-spinner Dilruwan Perera took six wickets in the second innings for a match-haul of 10, as the hosts registered a thumping 278-run win over South Africa inside three days of the opening Test on Saturday.
South Africa's skipper Temba Bavuma was pleased with the way his pacers performed in the demolition of Bangladesh in the T20 World Cup Super 12s match, in Abu Dhabi, on Tuesday.
Rohit Sharma's hopes of a Test comeback took a slight jolt as he was dismissed for a duck on the third and final day of the warm-up match between Board President's XI and South Africa.
It will be Ashwin's third county stint, having represented Worcestershire and Nottinghamshire in the past.
Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc produced high-quality reverse-swing to claim five wickets against South Africa as the tourists seized control of the first Test with a first innings lead of 189 at the close on the second day.
IMAGES from Day 2 of the rescheduled 5th Test between England and India at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Saturday.
The Indian team's strategy is expected to undergo paradigm shift with some players getting a subtle yet stern message to lift their games as they face an embarrassing possibility of a clean sweep against South Africa in the third ODI, in Cape Town on Sunday.
Led by Quinton de Kock, South Africa's 44 cricketers, who are part of a men's high performance squad, have returned to training amid the COVID-19 pandemic after getting approval from the country's sports ministry. South Africa has reported more than 1,38,000 COVID-19 cases with over 2,400 deaths.
The touring side reached 75-1 in their second innings at the close, a lead of 205, with Dean Elgar (38 not out) and Hashim Amla (23 not out) bringing some order to the final hour and ensuring their team are well-placed to force the victory that would level the four-match series at 1-1.
Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) general manager Col HS Manhas said all precautions are being taken by the medical teams amid the coronavirus scare.
South Africa's bowlers needed a little more than an hour of the final day's play to dismiss Sri Lanka for 281 in their second innings and claim a 206-run victory in the first Test in Port Elizabeth on Friday.
Maharaj said his lower-order colleague Vernon Philander (44 not out) kept him in good frame of mind.
Not just the 40 points, India will also be eyeing a 3-0 whitewash in the Gandhi-Mandela series.
Rohit Sharma made a dream start as a Test opener with an unbeaten century to put India in control on the rain-hit opening day of the first Test against South Africa.
India were 36 for one at stumps, with debutant Shubman Gill 28 not out and Cheteshwar Pujara on seven after the loss of opener Mayank Argarwal for a duck, after dismissing Australia for 195.
Seven promising young South African spin bowlers will attend a two-week course on spin bowling in Mohali, Punjab, next week. The players will leave on June 3 for the sessions, to be conducted by Devendar Arora, Narendra Hirwani and Umesh Patwal.
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis walked for the toss along with Temba Bavuma as the proxy captain, who was given the responsibility of calling the toss.
Rohit Sharma continued his sensational run as the Test opener with his third hundred of the series, allowing India to regain control of the proceedings after a top-order collapse on Day 1 of the third and final Test against South Africa.
Whether he is batting in the middle or fielding at the boundary line, Virat Kohli's every move will be tracked, though some of that attention will now be on skipper K L Rahul.
Images from Day 2 of the third Test between South Africa and India, in Cape Town, on Wednesday.
South Africa skipper Dean Elgar says he was initially "shocked" at Quinton de Kock's sudden retirement from Test cricket, but insisted that the team will take the setback in its stride and strive to level the ongoing series against India.
Images from Day 3 of the third Test between South Africa and India, in Cape Town, on Thursday.
India captain Virat Kohli has reached to within one point of top-ranked Steve Smith in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings after his imperious 254 not out in the second Test against South Africa in Pune.
Rohit Sharma scored a century in his first innings as India's new Test opener and gave the hosts a flying start along with partner Mayank Agarwal of Day 1 of the first Test in Visakhapatnam.
India's formidably consistent match-winners have a date with history in the New Year when they take on an out-of-sorts South Africa in the second Test in Johannesburg from Monday in pursuit of a coveted first-ever series win in the Rainbow Nation.
Images from Day 3 of the second Test between India and South Africa, in Pune.
Opener Mayank Agarwal stamped his authority on a struggling South African attack with a second successive hundred as India gained the upperhand on the opening day of the second Test.
South Africa needed to bat for 146 overs to save the second Test but fell just over eight short as a brilliant spell of bowling from Ben Stokes cleaned up their tail and levelled the four-match series for England in the final hour of the day.
IMAGES from Day 1 of the 1st Test played between South Africa and India at Centurion on Sunday.
Images from Day 2 of the first Test between Australia and South Africa in Perth, on Friday.
Images from the T20 World Cup Super 12s match between West Indies and South Africa, in Dubai, on Tuesday.
While wicket-keeper-batsman Klaasen recently notched 69 runs from 30 balls in South Africa's six-wicket win over India in the 2nd T20I, 20-year-old Mulder has played a single ODI against Bangladesh at East London in October 2017.
South Africa's Temba Bavuma was left stranded on 95 not out as they tightened their grip over scandal-hit Australia after reducing the hapless visitors to 110 for six at the close on the second day of the fourth and final Test on Saturday.
England needed four wickets to win in their 500th overseas Test, but had to overcome late resistance and feisty 71 from Keshav Maharaj and 39 from debutant Dane Paterson before completing the task 10 minutes before lunch.
South Africa trail by 439 runs and will need to bat for much of the weekend to stay in the contest and avoid going 2-1 behind in the four-Test series.
Images from the first One-Day International between South Africa and India, in Paarl, on Wednesday.
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