Team India's selection committee announced several unexpected choices and snubs for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. Beside the entry of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the T20I, the absence of Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer left everyone scratching their heads.
Both Rohit and Kohi are slated to participate in a T20I for India after a hiatus of over a year, with their last appearance being in the 2022 T20 World Cup. Beyond the inclusion of Rohit and Kohli, the selectors have also raised eyebrows by omitting Shreyas and Kishan from the squad. Additionally, while Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah are not part of the team, their absence was anticipated as they are likely being rested in preparation for the upcoming five-Test series against England.
The decision to leave out both Shreyas and Kishan from the squad has led to considerable surprise. Shreyas recently served as India's vice-captain during the T20I series against Australia in November and participated in the series against South Africa as well. Kishan was also included in both of these series.
Although the selectors have not provided an official explanation for the absence of Shreyas and Kishan from India's final T20I lineup before this year's T20 World Cup, there are reports suggesting that both the batters have been excluded due to disciplinary reasons.
Going by a report in the Bengali newspaper Anandabazar Patrika, the selectors are reportedly unhappy with Kishan. The wicketkeeper-batter was initially selected for the Test series against South Africa but opted to take a break just before the series commenced, citing personal reasons.
It was later discovered that Kishan was in Dubai, spending time with former Indian captain MS Dhoni, shortly after this break. He was also seen participating in a well-known TV quiz show. According to the report, the selectors' dissatisfaction with his actions is so strong that it might even jeopardize Kishan's chances of being included in India's squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
As far as Iyer's snub is concerend, his choice of shots during the two-match Test series in South Africa did not sit well with the selectors. They expected him to participate in the ongoing Ranji Trophy for Mumbai, which influenced their decision to exclude him from the T20I team. Iyer has been recently selected to play for Mumbai in their match against Andhra, scheduled to begin on January 12. The report indicates that the selection panel, headed by Ajit Agarkar, is adopting a strict approach towards players who do not give due importance to Test and first-class cricket.
India’s T20I squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar
Afghanistan’s T20I squad: Ibrahim Zadran (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Janat, Azmaullah Omarzai, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad, Naveen Ul Haq, Noor Ahmad, Mohammad Saleem, Qais Ahmad, Gulbadin Naib and Rashid Khan.
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