Jasprit Bumrah makes comeback, named captain for Team India in T20I series against Ireland
Despite captaining T20I side in absence of senior players like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya has not been included in squad
Mumbai, July 31: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced that Jasprit Bumrah will be making his comeback to competitive cricket as he takes on the responsibility of leading Team India in the T20I series against Ireland. The series is scheduled to begin in August.
After undergoing a successful back surgery in March, the pacer has been out of action since a T20I match against Australia at home last September. He also had to miss a significant portion of the Asia Cup due to his back injury. Although he briefly returned to play during the Australia T20I series at home in September, his injury flared up again.
Jasprit Bumrah's selection for the ODI series against Sri Lanka in January this year came after he began his rehabilitation in November the previous year and resumed bowling in December. However, as the intensity of his fitness drills increased in January, he experienced discomfort once more. As a result, he had to miss both the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 and the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023.
The squad also features some fresh faces, including Rinku Singh, who had a remarkable Indian Premier League (IPL) season with Kolkata Knight Riders, amassing 474 runs in 14 matches at an impressive average of over 59, with four half-centuries. Pacer Prasidh Krishna, who last played for Team India in August 2022 against Zimbabwe, missed the IPL 2023 due to a lumbar stress fracture. He was set to play for Rajasthan Royals in the tournament.
All-rounder Shivam Dube, who last represented India in February 2020, is also set to make a comeback to the national side. His return comes on the back of a spectacular 2023 IPL season with Chennai Super Kings, where he displayed his power-hitting prowess, scoring 418 runs in 16 matches and notching up three fifties. Dube played a crucial role in Chennai Super Kings' title-winning campaign.
Despite captaining the T20I side in the absence of senior players like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya has not been included in the squad. The matches will be played on August 18, 20 and 23 in Dublin, Ireland.
Team India (Senior Men) squad for T20I series against Ireland: Jasprit Bumrah (C), Ruturaj Gaikwad (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson (wk), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Ravi Bishnoi, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan.