The Indian Cricket will take part in the Nidahas Independence Tri- series to be played between India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh from 6th March to 18th March.
BCCI have rested senior players and given chance to youngsters who have done well in Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament, also IPL. The team will be led by Rohit Sharma.
Here we look at the 6 Indian players to watch out for in Nidhas Independence Tri- series 2018
- Mohammad Siraj
Mohammad Siraj has been given another chance to represent India in the shortest format. He made his T20I debut for India during 3 match series against New Zealand at home during October- November. He has played two T20I matches one against New Zealand and the other against Sri Lanka. In his debut match, Siraj went for 53 runs in 4 overs and took 1 wicket.
In the second match against Sri Lanka, Siraj went for 45 runs in 4 overs and picked up a single wicket. During 2017/18 Vijay Hazare Trophy tournament, Siraj was leading wicket taker with 23 wickets from 7 matches. He will accompany Jaydev Unadkat, Shardul Thakur in the pace department. He was bought by SRH franchise in 2017 edition of IPL for 2.6 Crores. This season, Mohammad Siraj will play for Royal Challengers Bangalore. In Syed Mushtaq Ali 2017/18 tournament, Hyderabad bowler took 10 wickets in 5 matches.
He has played 15 first-class matches for Hyderabad and has taken 57 wickets with 5 wickets in an innings only 1 time.
- Vijay Shankar
Vijay Shankar would get a chance to represent Indian team in T20 tournament. He has been selected replacing Hardik Pandya as an all-rounder. The Tamil Nadu lad has been doing well in domestic tournaments. His first-class debut for Tamil Nadu was in 2012 against Vidarbha. Since his debut, he has played 32 First class matches, 41 List A matches and 41 T20’s.
Vijay Shankar has been doing very well in the domestic circuit for quite some time. In T20s, he has scored 589 runs in 41 matches with the best score of 69. Medium pace bowler took 13 wickets so far with best figures of 2/12. With Hardik Pandya not in the squad, Shankar would be eager to showcase his talent and prove with his all-around abilities. He played for SRH franchise in 2017 edition, scored 101 runs in 4 matches. His best score in the tournament was 63*.
- Rishabh Pant
Rishabh Pant, the young and talented explosive batsman has been selected as the second wicketkeeper along with Dinesh Karthik. With Mahendra Singh Dhoni rested for T20I series, it will be a great chance for Pant to prove his hard-hitting abilities. In the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy tournament, the 20-year-old scored 411 runs from 10 matches at a strike rate of 195.71 with the best score of 116*. He was the second leading runs scorer in that T20 tournament.
He has played 2 matches for team India against England and West Indies. Known for his explosive batting, Pant would get 4 matches against in the tournament. He was dropped from the Indian team due to his poor form. Pant needs to score big runs during T20I tri-series and continue to be in the try for national selection.
- Washington Sundar
Washington Sundar, another young talented Indian cricketer will be seen in action during the T20I series against Sri Lanka and India. He made his T20I debut for India against Sri Lanka. In that match, Sundar was economical taking 1 wicket giving away just 22 runs. Sundar also played for India in 1 One day international match against Sri Lanka.
Sundar was a replacement for Ashwin in the Rising Pune Supergiants squad during IPL 10 season. He bowled brilliantly taking 8 wickets from 11 matches at an economy of 6.16. The young 18-year-old player made his first-class debut for Tamil Nadu in 2016. In the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, Sundar took 12 wickets in 9 matches with an economy of 6.88. He would be expected to perform well if given a chance.
- Deepak Hooda
Deepak Hooda, one more hard-hitting all-rounder was selected in the T20I squad against Sri Lanka but did not get a chance in the playing XI. He performed during Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 trophy for Baroda scoring 226 runs from 8 matches with the strike rate of 150.66. During the tournament, he scored 2 half centuries.
Hooda a right arm off spinner and hard hitting lower order batsman has the experience of playing 79 T20s for Baroda. The all-rounder played in 2015 and 2016 for Rajasthan Royals. It would be an ideal chance for Deepak Hooda to showcase his all-around abilities.
- KL Rahul
(Pic by BCCI)
KL Rahul another good batsman did not get a chance in the T20I series against South Africa that team India won by 2-1. He is again selected in the squad and might get a chance in the playing XI. In the 3 match test series against South Africa, KL Rahul played 2 test matches and failed to contribute.
KL Rahul has a century to his name in T20I format. If given a chance in the playing XI, the Karnataka opener must score big runs against weak opponents and ensure stiff competition.