NEW DELHI: After a year’s hiatus, regular skipper Rohit Sharma and stalwart Virat Kohli make a comeback to India’s T20 squad, set to face Afghanistan in a home series.
Their absence from T20 Internationals dates back to India’s loss against England in the World Cup semis in November 2022, fueling speculation about their future in this format. While they’ve been active in other formats, questions lingered about their participation in the upcoming T20 World Cup in West Indies and the United States.
In Rohit’s absence, Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav shared the T20 captaincy but are sidelined due to reported injuries for the Afghanistan series. KL Rahul’s exclusion remains unexplained by the Indian cricket board.
Meanwhile, the pace duo of Bumrah and Siraj have been rested ahead of the upcoming five-Test series against England. The series against Afghanistan begins on Jan. 11 in Mohali, followed by matches in Indore and Bengaluru.
India T20 squad: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar
