South Africa captain Temba Bavuma remains wary of India, their exploits in the Test matches notwithstanding, ahead of the ODI series beginning in Ranchi on Sunday.

KL Rahul will lead the side while Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will take to the crease after the Australia series. Regular captain Shubman Gill will miss the series because of the neck spasms which ruled him out of the Test series.

“If you look at the Test series, that was something that worked in our favour. To lose their captain in a big series, I think it’s not easy to just replace him. I mean also as a player, and as a batter as well. He fulfils a big and integrated role within their batting with the guys generally kind of bat around him. So I think within the Test series, that was a big loss for them,” Bavuma said on Star Sports.

“I think in the ODI setup, you know, I mean at least KL Rahul, he’s the stand-in captain. He’s had a little bit more time to come to terms with, I guess, the prospect of being captain. He would have had time at least to prepare and really come to terms with what he needs to do.

“I think he’s probably in a bit of a better situation and having guys like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma back into the team. So I think those guys will naturally take on a little bit more responsibility and kind of offload the pressure on him,” he added.

South Africa batting coach Ashwell Prince on Saturday said their side still needs to sharpen their temperament in “clutch moments” as they continue testing combinations ahead of the 2027 World Cup.

“We’ve been able to try different combinations in the 50-over space and we still have time before getting close to a final squad,” Prince said in Ranchi.

“If there’s one area, it’s the bigger moments — tighter, clutch moments. White-ball cricket is about high-pressure environments and that’s where we want to get better,” he said.

With heavy dew predicted for the series opener on Sunday, Prince said the toss could play a decisive role. “Our homework says a lot of dew is expected, so teams usually prefer chasing. But if we bat first on a good pitch and post a massive score, you can push the opposition into mistakes.”

Prince also acknowledged the impact of Rohit and Kohli’s comeback.

“They’re world-class and dangerous. We tend to try to focus on what sort of
damage we can cause the opposition rather than focus too much on how they can hurt us,” he said.

He termed the Proteas’ Test triumph as “massive”. “I think it’s not lost on anybody in the dressing room or anybody at home how massive the achievement was to win the Test series. We certainly enjoyed the evening,” he said.