1st ODI: India hope format change sparks revival against South Africa

After two defeats to South Africa in the Twenty20 international series, India will hope a return to their preferred format sparks an upswing in form with the first of five ODIs starting on Sunday at Kanpur's Green Park. The 2015 ICC World Cup semi-finalists will welcome back several key players, but stopping an upbeat South African outfit will take some doing.
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South Africa too are back in more familiar territory after their 2-0 success in the Twenty20 games, having played ODIs more recently than India, and that too with almost a full-strength squad.AB de Villiers' team will go into the five-match series as favourites against MS Dhoni's India, who will aim to avoid a repeat of the recent T20Is in Dharamsala and Cuttack.
India return to the ODI format after the short tour of Zimbabwe, in which several fringe players were selected. Now that the first-choice team has been picked, a familiar pattern should set back in with Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma opening, Virat Kohli batting at one-drop, Suresh Raina and Dhoni forming the fulcrum of the batting. Ajinkya Rahane, however, could face more drinks-running time owing to Ambati Rayudu's strong form in Zimbabwe. That said, Dhoni's comment after the Kolkata washout that India would have played Rahane in that match does hint at his comeback.
Stuart Binny and Amit Mishra were also due to play Thursday's final T20I, but whether they slot into the Rajkot game is not so straightforward. Binny looks the likelier of the two to get a game, considering he offers a seam-bowling and big-hitting option and did well on the tour of Zimbabwe. Alongside an in-form Ashwin, the management may stick with left-arm spinner Axar Patel. The pace quotient will likely be Umesh Yadav, Binny and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
In their previous ODI series, at home against New Zealand, the South African management used Morne van Wye as opening partner to Hashim Amla. Now with Quinton de Kock back in the fray, he should be the chosen one with van Wyk not part of the squad. Faf du Plessis' return means that Rilee Rossouw will vacate the No 3 spot, and a fit-again JP Duminy will slot back into the middle order.
As for the bowling, South Africa could bring back Morne Morkel in place of young Kagiso Rabada, which indicates a three-pronged pace attack comprising Morkel, Dale Steyn and one of Kyle Abbott and Chris Morris. Imran Tahir will be the specialist spinner, with the Duminy's offbreaks a reliable supporting option.
India and South Africa have met at Green Park for three Tests matches, but have never played an ODI against each other here. India's record here stands at nine wins from 12 matches; eight of those have come in their last nine trips to Kanpur dating back to 1996. Most recently, they beat West Indies by five wickets in November 2013.
This upcoming match kick starts the second phase of what promises to be an engaging series, who by the end will feel as if they know each other intimately after three T20Is, five ODIs and four Tests across 72 days.
Probable XIs
India: 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Rohit Sharma, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Ajinkya Rahane/Ambati Rayudu, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 MS Dhoni (capt/wk), 7 Stuart Binny, 8 Axar Patel, 9 R Ashwin, 10 Bhuvneshwar Kumar/Mohit Sharma, 11 Umesh Yadav
South Africa: 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Faf du Plessis, 4 AB de Villiers (capt), 5 JP Duminy, 6 David Miller, 7 Farhaan Behardien, 8 Chris Morris/Kyle Abbott, 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Imran Tahir