NEW DELHI: For the first time in 14 months, Rohit Sharma and
Virat Kohli
are set to take the field in a T20I for India after the national selection committee named the two veterans in the team for the three-match home series against Afghanistan starting on January 11. The development comes at a time when the Indian team management is trying to settle on a core group of players for the T20 World Cup in June.
With Hardik Pandya expectedly ruled out due to his ankle injury, Rohit has been asked to lead the T20I team again for the first time since the T20 World Cup in 2022.
Interestingly, the team management and the previous selection committee had decided to move on from the star batting duo after 2022’s T20 World Cup in Australia. Hardik had been leading the team in the shortest format since then. The team management had also groomed the likes of Shubman Gill,
Yashasvi Jaiswal
and Rinku Singh to play lead roles alongside Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya in the shortest format.
TOI understands that the BCCI and selectors had several rounds of discussions with Rohit and Kohli over the last two months about their white-ball future. It was conveyed to them that it might be difficult to accommodate both heavyweights in the T20I team. However, both players expressed a desire to play in the T20 World Cup in the US and Caribbean this year.
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It is learnt that the board has had second thoughts about Hardik’s ability to be a full-time, stable captain of the team because of his frequent injury breakdowns. Hardik is most likely to return for the IPL, in which he will be captaining Mumbai Indians, with Rohit playing under him.
...But star duo still not an automatic choice
According to sources, it has been made clear to Rohit and Kohli that this selection is in no way an assurance of a place in the T20 World Cup. Their fate depends on the kind of series they have against Afghanistan followed by the kind of form they exhibit in the IPL.
Rohit’s IPL record over the last five years has not been inspiring while Kohli has not hit top gear in the tournament in the last three years.
Meanwhile, Ravindra Jadeja has been rested for the series while Washington Sundar and Axar Patel have been entrusted with spin duties alongside Kuldeep Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi.
Pacer Jasprit Bumrah, expectedly, has been rested too and Mohammed Shami has not yet recovered from his injury.
Ishan dropped, Jitesh now first wicketkeeper choice
The selectors have also dropped Ishan Kishan, who was seen as the premier wicketkeeper not too long ago. The team management, it is learnt, was not happy with how Ishan was responding to “challenging situations”. Ishan had expressed a desire to take a break from travelling with the team and refocus, which is why he was released from the Test team in South Africa.
The selectors are very impressed with
Jitesh Sharma
and want to give him a longer run with the wicketkeeping gloves.
KL Rahul, despite an impressive showing in Tests and ODIs, especially in the World Cup and Asia Cup, has not been considered for the T20I format yet.
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