PTI
The Indian team for the 5-match T20I series against New Zealand has been announced last night. The huge surprise was that Sanju Samson had been dropped from the 16 member squad.
India will be touring New Zealand for a full packed tournament which includes 5 T20Is, 3 ODIs, and 2 Tests. The squad for the T20I series has been announced first up and there is no back up wicket-keeping option for Pant.
Sanju Samson who was selected for the series against West Indies and Sri Lanka has been dropped from the squad. Sanju Samson just played a solitary match against Sri Lanka where he got out LBW in the 2nd ball he faced after hitting the 1st ball for a six. There are also talks around that K L Rahul might be the backup wicket-keeping option for Pant if required.
Fans expressed their disappointment with Sanju Samson facing the axe.
The dynamic all-rounder Hardik Pandya also didn’t find a place in the squad as he is yet to prove his fitness at the highest level. Hardik Pandya who last played in September 2019 against South Africa in a T20I game underwent surgery and has been out of action since then.
He was expected to be named in the squad as he was seen practising regularly in the nets which were evident from his social media posts. As a result of Hardik Pandya’ omission, the Mumbai all-rounder Shivam Dube keeps his place in the side.
The Indian vice-captain Rohit Sharma and speedster Shami return to the squad after being rested in the T20I series against Sri Lanka.
Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma (VC), KL Rahul, S Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant (WK), ShivamDube, Kuldeep Yadav, YuzvendraChahal, W Sundar, JaspritBumrah
(To get exclusive tips related to your fantasy team, enter your name and phone number below)