VVS Laxman won't travel with Team India for Ireland T20Is; Bumrah and Co. to depart from Mumbai on August 15 - Reports
The National Cricket Academy (NCA) head VVS Laxman will not be traveling with the Indian squad for the three-match T20I series against Ireland as initially anticipated.
Jasprit Bumrah will lead Team India on his return from injury and subsequent surgery in the white-ball series that begins from August 18 onwards. With head coach Rahul Dravid and the rest of the support staff currently in the United States of America for the final two T20Is against the West Indies and a crucial 2023 Asia Cup ahead, it was expected that Laxman will be at the helm in Ireland.
The former batter has taken charge of the team in the past, most notably during the tour of New Zealand post the 2022 T20 World Cup. While he misses out on the Ireland series, there is still a high chance of him traveling with the Indian squad for the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou in October.
According to a report by Cricbuzz, the support staff for the Ireland tour will comprise Sitanshu Kotak and Sairaj Bahutule. The duo are coaches at the NCA, with Kotak dealing with the batters primarily and Bahutule handling the spinners, among other aspects.
Bahutule was recently involved with the Indian squad during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy to assist the spinners.
Team India squad members are to assemble in two batches in Dublin ahead of the series
The 15-man squad for the T20I series will report to Dublin, Ireland soon. The players currently involved in the series against the West Indies (Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, Mukesh Kumar, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh) will leave Miami after the fifth T20I.
The members from the subcontinent, which includes skipper Jasprit Bumrah, will depart with the rest of the players from Mumbai on August 15. The right-arm pacer will play his first competitive fixture since September 2022, in a bid to bowl with full throttle in the 2023 ODI World Cup. Apart from Bumrah, fellow pacer Prasidh Krishna also makes a return after a lengthy injury layoff.
All three T20Is will be held at The Village in Dublin on August 18, 20, and 23, respectively. The Men in Blue emerged as 2-0 winners during their short tour last year during the build-up to the 2022 T20 World Cup.
Team India squad for Ireland T20Is
Jasprit Bumrah (Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Jitesh Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan, Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube, Shahbaz Ahmed, and Sanju Samson.