KL Rahul has been included as the 16th player on the Indian team that will play three one-day internationals in Zimbabwe from August 18 to 22. Shikhar Dhawan, who was originally slated to be the team’s captain, has been replaced by Rahul, who will also serve as captain.

Rahul was added after receiving the go-ahead from the BCCI medical staff, who had previously recommended a two-week post-Covid-19 recuperation period. Rahul is thought to have caught the illness a week before he was supposed to leave for the West Indies in the middle of July for the five-match T20I series. Rahul was selected last week to play for India at full strength in the Asia Cup, starting on August 27 in the United Arab Emirates.

Rahul had to complete the required cardiovascular test once he recovered from Covid, gradually increasing his training regimen. KL Rahul, according to ESPNcricinfo, has started batting and training hard over the previous week. He then had a medical evaluation. Rahul had been healing from a sports hernia operation he had in Germany in June when he first caught Covid.

Since guiding the brand-new Lucknow Super Giants to the playoffs in the IPL 2022, Rahul hasn’t played any competitive cricket. He had initially been scheduled to travel with the England tour group to Birmingham for the fifth Test in early July, but he was forced to withdraw owing to a groin complaint that was later diagnosed as a sports hernia.

Rahul will serve as India’s captain for a second time. His initial spell was by no means noteworthy, with India being thrashed 3-0 in ODIs earlier this year in South Africa.

Later this week, the Indian squad will fly to Zimbabwe. All three One-Day Internationals will be held at Harare Sports Club, where the hosts are riding high following a thrilling 2-1 victory against Bangladesh. India automatically qualifies for the World Cup by virtue of being the host, despite the fact that the series is a crucial one for Zimbabwe since finishing in the top eight on the Super League table guarantees entry to the World Cup.

Updated India squad: KL Rahul (Captain) Shikhar Dhawan (vice-captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Deepak Chahar.