(Cricket news) After winning the T20Is and ODIs against New Zealand, India will now take on New Zealand in a white ball series. All the 3 format players have been rested as expected and Hardik Pandya is once again leading the side. The 3 T20Is will be played in Ranchi, Lucknow and Ahmedabad. The series is a good opportunity for youngsters to continue knocking on the door with consistent performance. There are reports that Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli won’t be considered for T20Is in the future and if India continue to perform well in these bilateral series then it could become the reality.

India’s squad: 

Hardik Pandya (Captain), Suryakumar Yadav (vice-captain), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, Shivam Mavi, Prithvi Shaw, Mukesh Kumar

Sanju Samson got injured in the 1st T20I against Sri Lanka and he isn’t in this squad presumably because of that injury as Jitesh Sharma keeps his place in the side. Harshal Patel has been dropped from the squad after a string of poor performances. Patel and Bhuvneshwar Kumar were India’s T20I specialist bowlers and now they will be looking forward to the IPL to impress the selectors again. Axar Patel wasn’t available due to family commitments. Kuldeep Yadav was rested for the Sri Lanka series but he is now back.

The big news is the return of Prithvi Shaw to international cricket after 18 months. The Mumbai batter has been smashing it in domestic cricket for a long time now and his selection was just a matter of time. There is still no place for Avesh Khan and Ravi Bishnoi who were a part of the squad before the World Cup but since are yet to return.

Also read: India announce squad for ODI series against New Zealand