Following his almost five-month recuperation at the National Cricket Academy, India’s quickest bowler, Mayank Yadav, was quickly promoted into the Indian squad for the three-match Twenty20 International series against Bangladesh on Saturday.
Only previous T20I captain Hardik Pandya remains a senior member of Suryakumar Yadav’s team; all other recent IPL performers have been picked.
After three years following his horrific T20 World Cup campaign in the UAE in 2021, mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy of the Kolkata Knight Riders was called up.
Following Pandya and Shivam Dube as the backup seamer all-rounder, Nitish Reddy also received a look-in despite missing the most recent Zimbabwe tour due to injury.
The 15-man roster, which includes Jitesh Sharma as the backup keeper behind Sanju Samson, has excellent players like Riyan Parag, Abhishek Sharma, and Harshit Rana.
The inclusion of Mayank, who often bowled for the Lucknow Super Giants at a pace of about 150 runs per game in three of his four IPL games—including back-to-back Player of the Match accolades that attracted international attention—is undoubtedly the biggest surprise.
The 22-year-old Delhi native Mayank was sidelined during the middle of the Indian Premier League because of a lower abdomen ailment.
His skill level was so great that the NCA wrapped him in cotton wool and put him through a rigorous rehabilitation program. As of late, he is bowling 14–15 overs every day.
Though there are only four overs to bowl, it is thought that the Bangladesh series is the ideal chance for the national selection committee and head coach Gautam Gambhir to see how he is handling the pressure of playing at the international level before he is unleashed into the Ranji Trophy red ball format.
He is seen as a talent who will serve Indian cricket for the longest period, so if his body holds up well, they may gradually draft him into the longer formats.
Despite taking an incredible 21 wickets from 14 games, Chakravarthy, a key player in KKR’s successful IPL campaign under Gambhir’s guidance, was ignored as recently as the tour to Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka.
However, it is understood that Gambhir was very keen on having Chakravarthy, who mainly bowls fast leg-breaks along with a deceptive wrong ‘un.
India will play three T20Is in Gwalior (October 6), New Delhi (October 9) and Hyderabad (October 12) against Najmul Hossain Shanto’s Bangladesh.
India’s squad for 3 T20Is against Bangladesh: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Riyan Parag, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Mayank Yadav.
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