In India, the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) had to revise the Indian team due to unforeseen conditions in the T20I match against Zimbabwe. Several top players like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shivam Dube and Sanju Samson could not leave Barbados on time as the flights were grounded due to the threat of cyclones and as a result the selectors hit Harshit Rana, Jitesh Singh and Sai Sudharsan named as replacements for the first two matches in a row.
Harshist and Sudharsan were recognized for their outstanding performances in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, while Jitesh was once a contender. The inclusion of these players also sparked controversy over the exclusion of a few prominent Team India stars. Notably absent were Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Varun Chakraborty, Mayank Yadav, Umran Malik and Yash Dayal. Ishan Kishan’s omission was particularly surprising given his former status as an all-rounder for India.
After the tour of South Africa, he requested a break from the BCCI and was advised to take part in domestic tournaments like the Ranji Trophy for Jharkhand to remain in consideration for selection Instead Kishan chose to train with Hardik Pandya for IPL 2024, decision of BCCI.
He reportedly did not go well with the selectors and as a result, despite the absence of Sanju Samson, Kishan was overlooked for the Zimbabwe series, meaning he is not currently among the best picks for the format short of the pecking order ahead of him is Rishabh Pant, . Sanju Samson, Dhruvajurel and Jitesh Sharma.
The omission of other prominent players like KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer also increased both the skills and eyeballs of the veterans. and in the bowling department, Varun Chakraborty, Mayank Yadav, Umran Malik, and Yash Dayal raise significant questions, with many suggesting that an all-rounder like Venkatesh Iyer could have been considered for selection.
The Indian squad for the T20I series against Zimbabwe:
Shubman Gill (Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Abhishek Sharma, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Nitish Reddy, Riyan Parag, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, and Tushar Deshpande.
For the first two T20Is, Harshit Rana, Sai Sudharsan, and Jitesh Sharma were added as replacements.
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