As selectors consider significant long-term changes, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been not included in India’s T20 team for the home series against New Zealand.
Following India’s defeat in the World Cup semi-final in November, there was discussion within the cricket board. The discussion was about phasing out older players. The aim of this was to bring in new talent and rejuvenate the team.
For the visit from the Black Caps, both men are still listed in the one-day squad. In an ODI on Tuesday at Guwahati, Kohli smashed 113 off 87 balls to propel India to a decisive victory over Sri Lanka. Rohit, the captain, struck 83.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India announced that batsman KL Rahul and all-rounder Axar Patel will miss the ODI and T20 matches against New Zealand. The reason for the absence is due to family obligations. The BCCI did not specify when they would be back.
It didn’t explain why the selector did not included Kohli and Rohit, the traditional all-format captain of the T20 team.
As he did against Sri Lanka earlier this month, Hardik Pandya will continue to lead the T20 team.
India will play the first of three T20 matches at Ranchi on January 27. The three-match ODI series against New Zealand will start on Wednesday in Hyderabad. This will be the first series for India after the COVID-19 Pandemic.
On February 9, India will begin a home Test series against Australia.
Odi Squad
Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, KS Bharat, Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Umran Malik are among the players with the captaincy of Rohit Sharma.
T20 Squad
Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Jitesh Sharma, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, Shivam Mavi, Prithvi Shaw, and Mukesh Kumar are among the players with the captaincy of Hardik Pandya.
Test Squad Against Australia
Rohit Sharma (captain), KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KS Bharat (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Shami Si