On Saturday, the IND vs ENG T20I squad was finally revealed, as per a report in the Indian Express. While majority of India’s T20I stars from the tour to South Africa returned to the side, some key faces including Rishabh Pant and Mohammed Siraj have been rested. Abhishek Sharma retains his spot in the side and will continue to open the innings for India.
Abhishek Sharma retains spot
In 12 matches till now, he has only scored 256 runs, at an average of 23.27, including a ton and a fifty.
He will partner with Sanju Samson at the top-order. The selectors sprung two more surprises though. While many were expecting Rishabh Pant and Mohammed Siraj to be a part of the squad, it seems both were rested for the upcoming ODIs and the Champions Trophy as well.
Rishabh Pant & Mohammed Siraj Rested?
Siraj has played only 16 T20Is till now and has bagged 14 wickets only. He last played in the shortest format in 2024 vs Sri Lanka as well. As for Rishabh Pant, he is vastly experienced, and has played 76 matches, scoring 1209 runs at an average of 23. Having said that, these weren’t the only names, who did not find the spot in the IND vs ENG T20I series.
There were a few more omissions, from the last South Africa tour. All-rounder Ramandeep Singh was axed just after one series. So was keeper Jitesh Sharma, as he failed to find a spot in the team. The fast-bowling trio of Vijaykumar Vyshak, Yash Dayal and Avesh Khan also didn’t make it to the squad.
India Squad for IND vs ENG T20Is
Suryakumar Yadav (C), Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel (vc), Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Shami, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (wk).
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