South Africa vs India 2018: India's probable playing XI for first ODI

Wicket-keeper and all-rounders

After a staggering start to 2017, MS Dhoni faded away somewhat toward the end, but still managed to maintain an average of over 60. One criticism levelled at the former skipper is that he has lost the ability to hit a long ball, and that he takes far too long to get going, leaving the rest of the batting line-up with too much work to do.

Pushing him up the order has eased some of the pressure and Dhoni has a lot more time to build his innings. While the search for his successor continues, Dhoni is still India's best bet heading into the 2019 World Cup.

What is it with Hardik Pandya that he can look so breathtakingly beautiful one day and so excruciatingly painful the next? A blistering 93 in the first Test had fans and selectors beaming with pride, but awful dismissal after awful dismissal in the subsequent innings had the very same people clamoring for his head.

Pandya is known to be suspect against the swinging ball at pace and that was clearly evident in the Test series. Another string of failures could well see the back of him, but then again, he remains India's best all-rounder at the moment.