Gaikwad out of South Africa Tests; Easwaran named replacement

Ruturaj Gaikwad has been ruled out of the remainder of the South Africa tour after injuring his right ring finger during the second One-Day International (ODI) in Gqeberha. He has been replaced by Benga batter Abhimanyu Easwaran, who is currently part of the India A squad in South Africa.

"He [Gaikwad] underwent scans, and following an expert consultation, the BCCI Medical Team has ruled him out of the remainder of the tour. He will be reporting to the NCA for further management of his injury," the BCCI media release said.

His finger injury did not allow him to participate in the deciding ODI on Tuesday (December 21), which India won. As a result, India handed out an ODI debut to Rajat Patidar.

"He [Gaikwad] hasn't fully recovered from the blow he sustained to his ring finger while fielding in the second ODI. He remains under the supervision of the BCCI Medical Team," the BCCI stated before the start of the third and final ODI on Thursday. 

The selection committee has also added Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Avesh Khan and Rinku Singh to India A's squad, while Kuldeep Yadav has been released from the squad.

With the white-ball series coming to an end, India and South Africa will clash in a two-match Test series agianst the hosts, starting December 26 at Centurion. The tour will reach its conclusion with the second Test, slated to be played in Cape Town from January 3 onwards.