RAHANE NAMED SKIPPER FOR AFGHAN TEST KOHLI COUNTY STINT GIVES NAIR SLOT FOR BENGALURU MATCH
SELECTION Hyderabad captain picked for ODIs, Rahane to lead in Afghanistan Test
NEW DELHI : Ajinkya Rahane will captain India in Virat Kohli’s absence in the one-off Test against Afghanistan in June.
The cricket Board (BCCI) named a 15-member squad for Afghanistan’s historic Test, to be played in Bangalore (June 14-18).
Batsman Karun Nair, dropped for the South Africa tour and the preceding home series against Sri Lanka, is back. However, Rohit Sharma, who failed in the first two Tests in South Africa after being picked ahead of Rahane, has been left out.
Chief selector, MSK Prasad, spoke about giving middle-order batsman Nair a chance when asked about Rohit, who was dropped in South Africa after failing in the first two Tests.
Kohli has been allowed to skip the Test and play county cricket (for Surrey) to acclimatise ahead of the England Test series, having failed against swing in 2014. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah have been rested.
Wriddhiman Saha is back, having missed two Tests in South Africa due to a hamstring injury.
Cheteshwar Pujara and Ishant Sharma, playing for Yorkshire and Sussex respectively, are in the Bangalore Test side.
Kohli will return for the Ireland and England series. Ambati Rayudu, who has performed brilliantly so far in IPL 2018, has been selected for the ODI series against England. Rayudu last played an ODI in 2016. After the Afghanistan Test, India will face Ireland in a two-match T20 series. Both games will be played in Dublin on June 27 and 29.
The Kohli-led India will then start their full tour of England with a three-match T20 series, starting July 3. The first game will be played in Manchester while the second and third will be played in Cardiff (July 6) and Bristol (July 8).
After a gap of three days, the two teams will feature in a threematch ODI series. The first match will be played in Nottingham (July 12) while the second and third will be played in Lord’s (July 14) and Leeds (July 17).
Shreyas Iyer has been named India A captain for the one-day tri-series against England Lions and West Indies A while Karun Nair will lead the side for two four-day games against West Indies A and one four-day match against England Lions.
“Prior to the ODIs, it will be a good opportunity for me to get to know the wickets there. It will be a great experience,” Iyer said.
KAUL ELATED
CHANDIGARH: The Kaul residence in Zirakpur near Chandigarh has been buzzing with congratulatory messages ever since news broke that Siddharth Kaul had been included in the India T20 and ODI team for the England and Ireland tour. The 27-year-old Punjab pacer has been dishing out superb deliveries for Sunrisers Hyderabad, taking it to the top of the table.
Expressing his thrill over the selection, Siddharth said, I have experienced this before. It feels good to be rewarded. Every cricketer wants to play for the country. Playing in Ireland and England would be a great opportunity. God has been kind to me and blessed me with so much.
Playing for SRH this season has been life-changing experience. I have felt very confident and in control.”
Prior to the ODIs, it (oneday triseries in England) will be a good opportunity for me to get to know the wickets there. It will be a great experience. SHREYAS IYER, India A skipper It feels good to be rewarded. Every cricketer wants to play for the country. Playing in Ireland and England would be a great opportunity. SIDDHARTH KAUL, Punjab pacer