You don’t often win 5-0. Beating any team 2-0 (Tests) and Bangladesh (3-0) isn’t easy. Team India hasn’t done that yet, but there is an opportunity for a series washout tomorrow at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. Now, the question is, will captain Suryakumar Yadav and head coach Gautam Gambhir for glory or give game time to those who haven’t played a game in the first two T20Is?
Expect changes
If one thinks this Indian management just wants to add another victory on the board, you haven’t watched them closely since the T20 World Cup 2024. Winning for the sake of it isn’t what they want. They seek improvement and excellence. The way to do that is experimentation. Why would Suryakumar bowl himself and Rinku Singh against Sri Lanka in the death overs if he wished to win 3-0?
The series is won, and now Team India will field those who couldn’t get game time in Delhi and Gwalior. So expect Tilak Varma, Ravi Bishnoi, Jitesh Sharma and Harshit Rana on the team sheet come 7 PM tomorrow. Ryan ten Doeschate, India’s assistant coach, echoed the same on the eve of the final T20I.
“There’s nice depth in the squad, and a lot of guys have got IPL experience. We try to expose as many guys as we can to international experience with what we’ve got coming up. So someone like Harshit Rana we’re keen to give a game to,” he said.
Point to prove
Harshit Rana is yet to make his India debut, having failed to make the cut in Sri Lanka in August. But now it seems he’ll get his first cap within the next 24 hours. Bishnoi, Jitesh and Tilak haven’t played for India since January. Within several stars rested, this might be the time to give them a go and see where they stand.
Bishnoi has been unlucky. Less than a year ago, he was the No. 1 T20I bowler and somehow slipped down the pecking without doing anything wrong. The leg-spinner missed the T20 World Cup berth and hasn’t played a game in this series so far despite doing well in Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka. Jitesh is one of the few lower-order wicketkeeper batters in India, but his competition, Rishabh Pant, has forced him out. Tilak should feel lucky; he’s only here because Shivam Dube’s injured, but if given a chance tomorrow, he should make full use of it.
Much more on the line
This might also be an audition for the upcoming 3-match T20I series against South Africa. Similar to the Bangladesh T20Is, all-format players like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, and Mohammed Siraj among others, are expected to be rested. The India vs Bangladesh 3rd T20I is the perfect time to test the bench warmers and make a decision about their place against the Proteas next month.
India’s squad for 3rd Bangladesh T20I
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Riyan Parag, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Tilak Varma, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Mayank Yadav
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