Team India and Sri Lanka started the year’s first international home series today, January 3, Tuesday. The team has lost the captain, Rohit Sharma, due to the thumb injury he sustained previously in the Bangladesh tour. He is supposed to return as captain for the ODIs on January 10. The team is currently being led by the in-form allrounder Hardik Pandya. The first T20 match starts at 7:00 PM IST. Rishabh Pant was removed from the squad of 16 during the recent New Zealand tour, he was the vice-captain of the Indian T20 squad. For the time being, Suryakumar Yadav has been promoted to Hardik’s deputy in his absence. KL Rahul and Virat Kohli have opted out of the T20I squad, they are both senior, experienced batsmen, but are reportedly out of form. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, India’s leading wicket-taker has also dropped out of the squad, he has been quickly replaced by young Arshdeep Singh and Umran Malik. Statistics predict that India might suffer in both the T20Is and ODIs as a result of experienced, senior players not being in the squad. The initiative of the government to broadcast the 1st T20I for free on several TV channels and online streaming platforms is being widely appreciated.
