The Indian team was announced by BCCI on Friday and the biggest talking point was the recall of experienced left hand batsman Yuvraj singh. The southpaw has made his comeback in both the T20 and ODI teams. He was rewarded for his performance in Domestic Cricket. Chief Selector Prasad said, “You should appreciate the way Yuvraj has played in domestic cricket. He has scored a double hundred and got a 180 on Lahli wicket. He’s done extremelly well in domestic circuit and has been given the due chances.” It’s a great chance for the flamboyant batsman to perform and cement his place in the side keeping upcoming Champions Trophy in sight.
Another Talking point was the inclusion of Delhi boy, Rishabh Pant in the T20 squad. Many are hailing him as the next MS Dhoni or a backup for MSD. Rishabh Pant performed excellently in U-19 World cup, IPL and Ranji Trophy. He even registered the fastest triple hundred in domestic circuit.
KL Rahul has made it as an opener in both T20 and ODI side. Due to Rohit Sharma’s injury, Rahul was always an option. Shikhar Dhawan has only returned in ODI side. He has been axed from the T20 side and Mandeep singh has been given a chance instead. Ajinkiya Rahane also had a similar fate as Dhawan. The Mumbaikar batsman has not been included in T20 side , which was quite a surprise. Suresh Raina has been excluded from ODI squad. He was there in New Zealand Series but couldn’t play because of his illness. He has been included in T20 squad. Manish Pandey, Kedar jadhav, Jasprit Bumrah all have retained their places.
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R Ashwin, Jadeja and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have all made a comeback to the national side. They were rested for previous assignment against New Zealand. Their inclusion has added a significant strength to the bowling attack. Ashish Nehra, the veteran left handed bowler, has also marked a return in T20 squad. He will be playing his first international match after T20 World Cup. Yuzvendra Chahal has retained his place in T20 side because of his good performance in shorter format. Hardik Pandya has been given another chance to prove his worth as an allrounder in limited overs format.
MS Dhoni will play as a wicket-keeper batsman after 9 years as he recently stepped down from limited overs Captaincy. He will be leading India against England in one of the two tour matches. Virat Kohli has been named captain for ODI and T20 Series which means he will be the captain across all formats. All in all, the squad looks like a blend of youth and experience. Here’s the squad:
INDIA ODI SQUAD:?Virat Kohli(c), MS Dhoni(wk), KL Rahul, S Dhawan, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Rahane, R Ashwin, Yuvraj Singh, Hardik Pandya, R Jadeja, B Kumar, J Bumrah, U Yadav, A Mishra.
INDIA T20 SQUAD: ?Virat Kohli(c), MS Dhoni(wk), KL Rahul, Mandeep Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, R Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, J Bumrah, B Kumar, Hardik Pandya, Ashish Nehra.
