2 Players likely to be dropped from India's playing XI for the 1st T20I against Australia
India are to begin their highly anticipated tour Down Under with a three-match T20I series, starting at the Gabba on the 21st of November, followed by the MCG on the 23rd and the SCG on the 25th. The squad for the series was already announced last month and comprises of the following players:
India Twenty20 squad: Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, Rishabh Pant (wk), Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed
While the squad does feature some familiar names, it also has its fair share of youngsters in the form of the middle order and an interesting quartet of spinners. Here is a look at two players that are likely to be dropped from the XI that played against the Windies in the last T20I.
#1 Manish Pandey
With Kohli returning to the side after being rested during the T20I series against the Windies, only one of KL Rahul and Manish Pandey will be able to play in the XI. In such a scenario, KL Rahul is likely to get the nod ahead of Pandey who is likely to sit out.
Manish Pandey's T20 record has been largely unimpressive this year. His 648 runs have come at a handy average of 32.40 over 33 games but at a strike rate of 117.17. With Australian pitches likely to be flat and batting heavy, Pandey's conservative style of play may just hand India a disadvantage.
In contrast, KL Rahul has been quite impressive with 956 runs in 24 games, with a phenomenal strike rate of 159.06. In addition to this, Rahul has even struck a superb century against England earlier this year and has displayed the fact that he has the ability to switch between multiple gears.
In such a case, Manish Pandey is likely to sit out.