We’ve already seen the new-age T20I for the Indian cricket team in Sri Lanka. With Suryakumar Yadav taking over the reins from Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill being named the vice-captain. But the team we saw in Pallekele won’t feature in the India vs Bangladesh T20I series. You see, 2 Tests are to be played before the 3-match series and 3 Tests after it finishes. This means some player’s workload has to be managed and some changes to the squad are expected.
Jaiswal & Pant rested; no place for Ruturaj Gaikwad
Yashasvi Jaiswal has been a lot of cricket in 2024. He has only received some rest when Team India play ODIs, the number of which has been just 3. Naturally, he needed to kick up his feet before the India vs New Zealand Tests. The same goes for Rishabh Pant, who’s been playing in all three formats since March continuously. Their absence means that two players get a chance.
Abhishek Sharma, who impressed in his debut series against Zimbabwe, will find a spot in the 15-man squad as Jaiswal’s like-for-like replacement. Unfortunately, Ruturaj Gaikwad, who batted at the number three position in Harare, might not be called. With Pant expected to be given a rest, another lefty wicketkeeper, Ishan Kishan, is likely to be named as his replacement. Sanju Samson, who failed in Sri Lanka, will retain his spot and force the selectors to leave Gaikwad out.
The other three batters will be Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav and Rinku Singh. Gill could have been rested as well, but given that he’s the new white-ball vice-captain, he would probably feature in the India vs Bangladesh T20I squad. Suryakumar is not only the captain but also a one-format specialist at the moment. Rinku would retain his spot as India’s designated finisher as well.
Flurry of all-rounders
Not including Abhishek Sharma’s left-arm orthodox spin, Team India is likely to include 5 all-rounders. These will be Hardik Pandya, Nitish Reddy, Riyan Parag, Shivam Dube and Washington Sundar. Similar to Sri Lanka, head coach Gautam Gambhir is expected to go with multiple bowling options. While Pandya, Reddy and Sundar are proper all-rounders, Dube and Parag can roll their arms over if and when needed. This also means that the number of ‘pure’ bowlers will decrease.
3 bowlers
Ravi Bishnoi will be the front-line spinner, with Parag and Sundar being his spin partners. If needed, Rinku, Suryakumar and Abhishek can roll their arms over. Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav will be rested even if they don’t play the India vs Bangladesh 2nd Test, as they’ve been travelling all over the world since the IPL 2024 season ended and need some rest.
Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj won’t play either. In their absence, Arshdeep Singh will be the leader of the bowling unit, which consists of just Harshit Rana and Mukesh Kumar. With three fast-bowling all-rounders, the services of these two are expected to be enough. Rana is expected to be the middle-over enforcer, while Mukesh and Arshdeep will bowl in the powerplay and death. Khaleel Ahmed won’t feature as they are too similar to Arshdeep.
Probable India T20I squad for Bangladesh
Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (vc), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Sanju Samson (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Nitish Reddy, Riyan Parag, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Mukesh Kumar.
India vs Bangladesh T20I series schedule
| Match | Date | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 1st T20I | October 6 | New Madhavrao Scindia Cricket Stadium, Gwalior |
| 2nd T20I | October 9 | Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi |
| 3rd T20I | October 12 | Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad |
