The BCCI on Thursday announced an 18-man squad for the five-match T20I series against West Indies in Trinidad starting July 29. While Rohit Sharma will return to lead the team after being rested for the ODIs ahead of the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka starting in August, former captain Virat Kohli has been rested once again. Apart from Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal are the other notable exclusions.
At the same time, Ravichandran Ashwin, KL Rahul and Kuldeep Yadav have returned to the team. Ashwin has returned to the Indian T20 team after a gap of more than six months. He last featured in a game against South Africa at Paarl which the Men in Blue lost by 7 wickets.
On the other hand, the inclusion of Rahul and Kuldeep depends on their fitness, the BCCI said.
The team includes a fast-paced all-rounder in Hardik Pandya who has been in great form recently. Apart from him, Axar Patel along with Ravindra Jadeja remains a part of the mix.
Rohit Sharma (C), I Kishan, KL Rahul*, Suryakumar Yadav, D Hooda, S Iyer, D Karthik, R Pant, H Pandya, R Jadeja, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, R Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav*, B Kumar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh.
*Inclusion of KL Rahul and Kuldeep Yadav depends on fitness.
— BCCI (@BCCI) 14 July 2022
The selectors have also rested wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who is currently touring England with the Indian team. Youngster Ravi Bishnoi has found a place to share the leg-spin responsibilities with senior Kuldeep Yadav.
The pace attack will be led by veteran Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The right-arm pacer did exceptional work in the England T20Is and won the ‘Player of the Series’ award. He will be backed by Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel and left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh. Meanwhile, young pacer Umran Malik, who made his Ireland debut last month, may find a place in the squad.
Indian squad for West Indies T20Is:
Rohit Sharma (C), Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Shreyas Iyer, Dinesh Karthik, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Avesh Khan , Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh.
The reason behind Kohli’s ouster has not been mentioned in the BCCI release. However, it is being speculated that the former captain has been rested as he has asked for a break. This will be the second time in the last few months that he has been offered rest. He did not feature in the domestic T20I series between India and South Africa, which happened after the conclusion of the IPL. He was also rested for the opening T20I against England in Southampton, after the rescheduled fifth Test.
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