Skipper Virat Kohli and opener Rohit Sharma skipped the optional practice session but spinner Kuldeep Yadav looked to hone his batting skills ahead of India’s third and final Test against South Africa here on Thursday.
Kuldeep, who sat out of the first two Tests, made full use of the net session displaying some elegant cover drives in their afternoon practice which was also attended by Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara, Mayank Agarwal and Ishant Sharma among others.
Earlier chief coach Ravi Shastri and bowling coach Bharat Arun had a close look at the pitch which wore a dry look, indicating that it would have something for the spinners.
Spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have been the key bowlers for India, bagging 14 and 10 wickets each and Kuldeep’s inclusion will only be at the cost of a pacer.
The pacers too have made crucial contributions with Mohammed Shami claiming eight wickets at a strike rate of 41 and Umesh snapping six wickets at an even better strike rate of 21 and it remains to be seen if Kohli tinkers with his winning combination.
The Proteas trained in the morning session with focus on their batsmen.
South Africa’s training was attended by skipper Du Plessis, Temba Bavuma, Theunis de Bruyn, Quniton de Kock, Senuran Muthuswamy as they faced the net bowlers.
Vernon Philander was seen among the bowlers but the new-ball bowler was mostly seen honing his batting skills.
