Hardik Pandya confirms Team India's arrival in Sri Lanka
Hardik Pandya has confirmed Shikhar Dhawan-led Team India's touchdown in Sri Lanka. The all-rounder posted a photo from Colombo airport on Monday, six hours after the BCCI shared the squad's pre-departure picture.
Team India will play three ODIs and as many T20Is in the island nation, starting with the former series on July 13. All the matches will be hosted in Colombo.
The touring party, which involves a 20-member main squad, five net bowlers and support staff led by head coach Rahul Dravid, will undergo a three-day quarantine in their hotel rooms.
Following this, they will start training in a controlled environment as per the guidelines laid out by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).
Hardik Pandya, who was thoroughly missed by the Virat Kohli-led side in England during the World Test Championship (WTC) final, is returning to the international fold after more than three months.
He was one of the frontrunners to lead the young team but will now ply his trade as one of the senior members.
More than his batting form, which took a slight dip in IPL 2021, all eyes will be on his bowling fitness. Pandya suffered a serious back injury during the 2018 Asia Cup and hasn't been able to return to his old workload ever since.
Pandya's importance in the current scenario can be gauged by the fact that he's the only designated fast-bowling all-rounder in both the Virat Kohli-led and Shikhar Dhawan-led Indian teams.
His contribution with the ball will be crucial for India's balance in the all-important upcoming T20 World Cup.
India's full squad for Sri Lanka limited-overs series
India’s squad: Shikhar Dhawan (Captain), Prithvi Shaw, Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Suryakumar Yadav, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Nitish Rana, Ishan Kishan (Wicket-keeper), Sanju Samson (Wicket-keeper), Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, K Gowtham, Krunal Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (Vice-captain), Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini, Chetan Sakariya
Net Bowlers: Ishan Porel, Sandeep Warrier, Arshdeep Singh, Sai Kishore, Simarjeet Singh