Shivam Dube, who hasn’t been part of India’s T20I setup for the last six months, will return to the team. The all-rounder featured against Sri Lanka in July but wasn’t picked for subsequent series’ against Bangladesh and South Africa. Dube wasn’t originally selected in India’s squad for the England T20Is but will join the team in Rajkot.
Shivam Dube replaces Nitish Kumar Reddy
According to Indian Express, Nitish Kumar Reddy has injured himself and isn’t expected to return to full fitness. Dube won’t play the second T20I in Chennai as he’s currently in Mumbai, having just finished a Ranji Trophy match against Jammu and Kashmir. Therefore, he’ll join the squad in Rajkot for the third T20I.
As for Nitish Reddy, his injury or the extent of it isn’t known yet. With him gone, there is a chance that all-rounder Washington Sundar comes in for the India vs. England T20I 2nd T20I, which will be played later today (January 25).
More on Cricket
- “Some matches went bad”: Virat Kohli’s childhood coach expects “champion” to shine in Champions Trophy
- FC Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano Live Streaming: Where to watch La Liga match in India?
- Alex Hales chooses to play for KKR’s franchises in MLC & CPL over ECB’s The Hundred & T20 Blast
Dube’s form and falling out of favour
Shivam Dube will join the squad off the back of two ducks against Jammu and Kashmir. However, his performance in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) was exceptional. There were doubts over his fitness as he missed the initial phase of the Ranji Trophy, but he scored 151 at 75.50 while striking at 179.76 and bowled in all five matches he played in the SMAT, showing he’s fit.
Having fallen out of favour with the emergence of Nitish Reddy, Dube will return to the team. He’s also expected to slot right in as a like-for-like replacement. From there on, it’ll be up to him. If he performs at his best, there is no way the management can keep him out of the squad.
India’s squad for England T20Is
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy (replaced by Shivam Dube), Axar Patel (vc), Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (wk)
Editor's Pick
