Ind vs SL: Rohit returns for ODIs, Hardik T20I captain; Mukesh, Mavi earn maiden call ups

Sri Lanka tour of India 2022: Rohit Sharma returns while Shikhar Dhawan dropped from ODIs, Hardik Pandya named T20I captain; Mukesh Kumar, Shivam Mavi earn maiden call ups.

Pandya appointed vice-captain in ODIs as well as in T20Is (Courtesy: ©Getty Images)

After India’s 2-0 win over Bangladesh in the two-match Test series, the focus has shifted towards the beginning of the home season as The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has declared the squads for both the T20I series and One Day International (ODI) series against Sri Lanka.

The selection committee has handed Hardik Pandya the leadership duties for the shortest format of the game in the absence of Rohit Sharma who after recovering from a finger injury is set to lead the Indian team during the ODIs.

India’s T20I squad against Sri Lanka: Hardik Pandya (captain), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (vice-captain), Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Sanju Samson, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Harshal Patel, Umran Malik, Shivam Mavi, Mukesh Kumar

India’s ODI squad against Sri Lanka: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umran Malik, Arshdeep Singh

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Shikhar Dhawan not included in ODI squad for Sri Lanka series (Source: ©Getty Images)

India drop Dhawan in ODIs; Samson, Kishan gets chance ahead of Pant in LOIs

One of the biggest developments regarding India’s squad selection was dropping Shikhar Dhawan from the ODIs. The left-hand opener who till now has scored 6,793 runs in 167 runs at an average of 44.11 was captain of India in the 50-over format when they toured New Zealand. But his poor form coupled with poor strike rate perhaps has stalled his ODI career at the moment.

In Rohit Sharma’s absence during the third ODI against Bangladesh in Chattogram, Ishan Kishan coming as a replacement, scored a thumping double hundred. The wicketkeeper batter has been included for the Sri Lanka series for both ODIs and T20Is along with another opener Shubman Gill, who too has been really consistent for India in 2022. Ruturaj Gaikwad and Rahul Tripathi have been included in the squad for the 20-over games. Middle-order batter, Rajat Patidar has also been omitted while Shreyas Iyer will be back for the ODI series.

Rohit Sharma who has been practicing batting after recovering from his finger injury is set to return for the ODIs along with Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, both of whom have been given rest for the T20Is.

Few sources have also informed that Rishabh Pant who was picked for neither of the series, has been sent to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru for strength and conditioning test before the Test series against Australia; the team management feels that the left-hand wicketkeeper batter will have a huge role to play against Australia in the four-match Test series and this break for him after playing 44 internationals this year will be really beneficial for the player. India have to win three of the four games against the touring Australia side to qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) final.

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Pandya is in the race of becoming India's full time T20I captain (Source: ©Getty Images)

Hardik gets leadership role in T20Is; Jadeja’s recovery taking extended time

One of the significant developments has been Hardik Pandya being given the leadership duties for the T20Is. The all-rounder led Gujarat Titans (GT) to their first Indian Premier League (IPL) trophy in their maiden season during IPL 2022. That should be a sign that he is in the scheme for India for future captaincy options.

The worrying development for India has been the extended convalescence period of India’s prolific all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja who is still recovering from a knee injury that he picked up during Asia Cup 2022 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in August-September.

Jadeja’s recovery process is taking longer than expected and it has been learnt that the team management wants the all-rounder to be totally match fit before being part of India’s Test side against Australia. That means Jadeja could play in a Ranji Trophy game for Saurashtra, subject to permission, to prove his match fitness ahead of the series.

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Mukesh Kumar gets maiden T20I call for India (Photo: ©Twitter)

Mavi, Mukesh get maiden T20I call-ups; Bhuvneshwar gets dropped from both squads

After bagging a huge pay cheque at the IPL 2023 mini auction, Uttar Pradesh’s Shivam Mavi and Bengal’s Mukesh Kumar have earned maiden call-ups for the T20Is. In the last Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2022, Mavi picked up ten wickets in seven games at an economy of 6.64 while Mukesh grabbed six wickets in six games at an economy rate of 7.04.

Harshal Patel is going to play in the T20Is, while Umran Malik is set to feature in both the T20Is and ODIs. Deepak Chahar who had pulled out of the tour of Bangladesh with a hamstring injury is not part of these squads while the nagging injury sustained by seamer Prasidh Krishna is a huge concern for India. The lanky fast bowler from Karnataka was excellent in the middle overs taking wickets on a regular basis; his height and hard length bowling with full pace was troubling the batters so often. But since catching the back injury on the eve of India A’s series against New Zealand in September, Krishna is yet to recover.

Jasprit Bumrah has been given an extended break and is expected to return for the upcoming New Zealand series while Mohammed Shami will return for the ODIs. India’s new sensational left-arm pacer, Arshdeep Singh too has been included in both the squads.

In the spin department, Kuldeep Yadav has been picked for the T20I squad, while Yuzvendra Chahal has been included in both the squads. Ravi Bishnoi’s exclusion is tough to digest but he is expected to get his chance in the future. India have also parted ways from their veteran bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar while Mohammed Siraj after spending a break for the T20I series will return for the ODIs.

India will play the first of the three-match T20I series on January 3 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The next two games will be played on January 5 and 7 at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune and Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) Stadium in Rajkot, respectively.

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