Rohit Sharma to lead India in T20Is against New Zealand
The Chetan Sharma-led BCCI selection committee has picked India's T20I squad for the upcoming series against New Zealand at home. India will play three T20Is starting from November 19 onwards. Notably, Rohit Sharma will lead the T20I side after Virat Kohli had earlier stepped down. Kohli is being rested for the T20I series. There are a few new faces for Team India.
BCCI announces India's T20I squad
The Indian T20I team includes Rohit Sharma (captain), KL Rahul, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, Mohd. Siraj.
Fresh faces constitute India's T20I squad for NZ series
India's T20I side boasts of several new players. Several players who were part of the ICC T20 World Cup squad have been rested. India have handed call-ups to Venkatesh Iyer and Ruturaj Gaikwad, who impressed in the IPL 2021 season. Yuzvendra Chahal has made a return after being snubbed for the T20 World Cup. Harshal Patel and Avesh Khan have also been included.
A look at the schedule
India will feature in three T20Is in Jaipur (November 17), Ranchi (November 19), and Kolkata (November 21). There will be two subsequent Test matches which will be played in Kanpur (November 25-29) and Mumbai (December 3-7) respectively.
India need a strong show in T20Is
After exiting the T20 World Cup in the Super 12 stage, a new look Indian team will hope to show its character against the Kiwis. Notably, NZ beat India in the T20 World Cup. The Kiwis have reached the semis and will take on England. India will need to be at their best to test a strong Kiwi outfit in the T20I series.
Umran Malik handed a berth in India A squad
The BCCI also announced the India A squad to tour South Africa. Jammu and Kashmir fast bowler Umran Malik has been selected. He bowled at great pace and was the fastest Indian in the IPL after replacing T Natarajan in SRH's squad. Prithvi Shaw, Devdutt Padikkal, and Rahul Chahar have also made the cut. Notably, Chahar was part of India's T20 WC squad.
A look at the India A squad
India A squad includes the likes of Priyank Panchal (captain), Prithvi Shaw, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Devdutt Padikkal, Sarfaraz Khan, Baba Aparajith, Upendra Yadav (wicket-keeper), K Gowtham, Rahul Chahar, Saurabh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Umran Malik, Ishan Porel, Arzan Nagwaswalla.
