India will take on New Zealand at home from November 17 in three T20Is and a couple of Tests. While Virat Kohli is expected to miss the entire series, the T20I squad was announced.
Team India continues to mourn its early exit from the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, having been ousted in the Super 12 stage and failing to make it to the semis. However, it needs to dust the negativity aside and gear up for the upcoming home series against New Zealand from November 17, which comprises three T20Is and a couple of Tests.
Meanwhile, some top players look set to miss out, at least the T20Is. It is a part of a break from the rigid cricketing commitments in the past few months. Since June, some senior players have been playing non-stop cricket, including the ICC World Test Championship final, Tests in England, Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 and the ongoing T20WC.
Keeping in mind the players' mental well-being after being confined to bubble life for too long, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is set to give some of the senior players a long break. Also, with some players set to be a part of the side for the upcoming crucial tour of South Africa next month, the BCCI would want its players fit and not risk a physical burnout.
Virat Kohli is missing out on the T20Is, while he is also likely to miss the Tests or the opening Test. Rohit Sharma is the new T20I captain, with Kohli relinquishing the role post T20WC. The Test duties would be handled by Ajinkya Rahane, who is currently the vice-captain in the format if Kohli decides to give it a skip. At the same time, KL Rahul is the deputy in T20Is, while he would handle the same role in the Tests on Kohli's truancy.
In the meantime, the BCCI announced the T20I squad on Tuesday evening. It happens to be a familiar side, while pacer Harshal Patel and Venkatesh Iyer are the ones to earn their maiden national call-up, thanks to his prolific outing in IPL 2021. Pacer Harshal finished as the highest wicket-taker, claiming 32 wickets for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 15 matches at an economy of 8.14, including a four-for and a fifer.
On the other hand, all-rounder Venkatesh was deadly with the bat for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), especially in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) leg of IPL 2021. He scored 320 runs in 10 games at an average of 41.11 and a strike rate of 128.47, including four half-centuries. He finished as KKR's fourth-highest wicket-taker.
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India T20I squad vs NZ: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul (vc), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel and Mohammed Siraj
India vs New Zealand 2021-22 schedule:
1st T20I: November 17 (Jaipur)
2nd T20I: November 19 (Ranchi)
3rd T20I: November 21 (Kolkata)
1st Test: November 25-29 (Kanpur)
2nd Test: December 3-7 (Mumbai)