As the the regular captain Rohit Sharma has been ruled out of the game after testing positive for COVID-19 for the second time on Wednesday, Hardik Pandya is going to lead the team for the 1st T20 match against England.
While Addressing a virtual media conference on Wednesday, India coach Rahul Dravid informed that Rohit Sharma’s second RT-PCR Test has also come positive .So there is no chance of coming back to the squad of this Indian opener for the England tour.
The selection committee, headed by Chetan Sharma, reportedly determined that the team chosen for the Ireland T20Is will play the series opener against England due to the short turnaround between the final day of the Test and the first T20I.
With the first Test scheduled to finish on July 5 and the first T20I scheduled for July 7 in Southampton, the selection committee has decided that the star players to give a three-day recovery period before they are picked from the second game .
“Once they are well rested, all of them will be a part of the regular white ball side but most of the players in Ireland will remain till the end of T20I series.” According to a source in the BCCI.
So The Squad for Ireland series will play first T20I against England. And then from the second T20I, all the stars (Rohit, if fit, Kohli, Bumrah, Pant, Jadeja) will make a comeback.
On July 1 and July 3, while the Test match is taking place, India is also slated to play two T20 warm-up games. This makes it very clear that the team who triumphed in the Ireland series will play in these matches as well. In the two warm-up games, the visitors will compete against Derbyshire and Northamptonshire, respectively. When the team for the limited-overs portion of the England tour will be formally announced by the selectors is still to be determined.
India’s second-string team defeated Ireland 2-0 in the T20I series under the leadership of Hardik Pandya. The hosts were within four runs of winning the 2nd game but they fell just short.
India are scheduled to clash with England in three T20Is, three ODIs and the 5th and the final Test of the unfinished series.
India Tour of England Schedule:
India vs Derbyshire T20: July 1
India vs England 5th Test – July 1-5 @ Birmingham
India vs Northamptonshire: July 3
IND vs ENG 1st T20: July 7 @ Southampton
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: July 9 @ Birmingham
IND vs ENG 3rd T20: July 10 @ Nottingham
IND vs ENG 1st ODI: July 12 @ Kennington Oval
IND vs ENG 2nd ODI: July 14 @ Lord’s
IND vs ENG 3rd ODI: July 17 @ Manchester
By Nilanchal Naik
