The squad for India’s upcoming T20I series against New Zealand has been selected. Starting on November 17th in Jaipur, the tournament will involve three T20I games before the focus shifts to the Tests. In this article, we take a look at the strongest Indian XI for the first T20I game against New Zealand that will happen on 17th November.
After an early exit from the T20 World Cup, the upcoming series will mark the new era of T20 cricket for India. While Rohit Sharma will be the captain, Rahul Dravid will be the coach. The likes of Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah have been rested for this tournament.
India’s T20I squad: Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul (VC), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, and Mohd. Siraj
Openers: Rohit Sharma (C) and KL Rahul (VC)
Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul will be the openers in the strongest Indian XI for the first T20I game against New Zealand. The duo did well in the recent T20 World Cup barring the failures in the first two encounters. Apart from operating as the openers, Rohit and Rahul will form the core leadership group. For India’s future in this format, this opening duo has to succeed and do well consistently.
Middle-Order: Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav and Rishabh Pant (WK)
In the absence of Virat Kohli, it will mostly be Shreyas Iyer who will bat at No.3. Shreyas is suited to the anchor role and on the Indian pitches, his skills against the spinners will be useful. The rest of the middle-order will remain the same as in the T20 WC. SKY and Pant will play in the core middle-order while Ishan Kishan might be the backup.
All-Rounders: Venkatesh Iyer and Axar Patel
It is the all-rounder’s department that will wear a fresh look for the team against New Zealand. Venkatesh Iyer, who made an impression in the UAE leg of IPL 2021 will be India’s next experiment in the pace-bowling all-rounder slot. Whether Iyer will be played in the lower middle-order or in the top-order will be interesting to see. Axar Patel will replace Ravindra Jadeja as the spin bowling all-rounder in the XI.
Bowlers: R Ashwin, Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Mohammed Siraj
After showing that he still has got the skills in the shorter formats, R Ashwin will continue to be a part of the XI. Yuzvendra Chahal will return to the squad and his partnership with Ashwin will be exciting for the viewers. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is in the squad but looking at the future, Mohammed Siraj and Deepak Chahar are likely to be the pacers. Harshal Patel and Avesh Khan could also get a chance depending on the conditions and form.
