BCCI names Axar Patel's replacement for last two T20Is against South Africa

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has named spin-bowling allrounder Shahbaz Ahmed as the replacement for Axar Patel for the last two T20Is in the ongoing five-match series against South Africa.

Axar is recovering from illness and will remain with the team in Lucknow, the venue for the fourth T20I, "where he will be further medically assessed." Axar had scored 23 runs and claimed figures of 2/7 in India's 101-run win over the Proteas in the first T20I at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack. 

He was a tad expensive in India's humbling defeat in the 2nd T20I at the New Chandigarh Stadium in Mullanpur, conceding 27 runs at nine in three overs, and could only manage a run-a-ball 21 after being promoted to number three. He was unavailable for selection in the third T20I at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association in Dharamsala.

As for Shahbaz, he was a part of India's gold medal-winning squad at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, in 2023. His last T20I appearance had come against Afghanistan in the final on October 7. He has also played three ODIs for Team India.

Shahbaz has a wealth of IPL experience. He has played 58 games and represented three franchises, accumulating 545 runs at a strike rate of 121.65 with the help of a half-century. He has also snared 22 wickets at an economy rate of 9.58 runs per over.

Meanwhile, the hosts are leading the series 2-1 after routing the visitors by seven wickets in the third T20I. A win in the fixture at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium on December 17 will help India take an unassailable lead in the series.

India’s squad for the last two T20Is vs South Africa: 

Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed