Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has picked his preferred Team India playing XI for the first T20I against South Africa. The men in blues will lock horns with the Proteas in a five-match T20I series, which starts on June 9 in Delhi.
The Indian selectors have named a 18-member squad for the five fixtures, with KL Rahul set to the lead the side in the absence of regular captain Rohit Sharma. The 35-year-old cricketer was rested ahead of the fifth and final Test against England, which starts on July 1 in Birmingham.
During an interaction on the Star Sports show ‘Game Plan’, Shastri picked Rahul and Ruturaj Gaikwad as the likely openers for the first game. The former Team India head coach picked the rest of the batters if Ishan Kishan plays at No. 3.
“If you bat him (Ishan) at three, then it will be Shreyas (Iyer) at No. 4, (Rishabh) Pant at No. 5 and Hardik (Pandya) at No. 6,” Shastri said.
Incidentally, Ravi Shastri left out Dinesh Karthik, Deepak Hooda and Venkatesh Iyer from his playing XI. Karthik and Hooda had a spectacular run in the recently concluded IPL 2022, chipping in with many successful contributions.
Ravi Shastri picks India’s bowling attack
The 60-year-old added that Umran Malik might pip Arshdeep Singh for a spot in the playing XI if Bhuvneshwar Kumar plays. Ravi Shastri feels Axar Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal as his two spinners.
“No. 7 will be Axar Patel. I think eight will be Bhuvneshwar Kumar batting-wise, then Chahal, Arshdeep Singh/Umran Malik and Harshal Patel. Umran or Arshdeep depending on the ground and what the pitch is like,” he added.
“I think if Bhuvi plays, then Umran is better because Bhuvi can do a job for you at the death. But then again you are looking for someone at the death, they are looking to develop that bowler. So if Harshal is going to do that, he plays that game,” Ravi Shastri concluded.
Ravi Shastri’s Indian XI for the 1st T20I: KL Rahul, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh/Umran Malik, Harshal Patel.
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