Pandya to lead India in Ireland T20Is, Bhuvneshwar named as deputy

NEW DELHI: India have announced a 17-member squad with all-rounder Hardik Pandya to lead the side for the first time as the Men in Blue are scheduled to tour Ireland for the T20I series later this month.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has put faith in young players for the upcoming task against Ireland as Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, and Rohit Sharma have not been included in the squad.

Pandya, who steered Gujrat Titans to the IPL title this year with his captaincy, has been set to captain the Indian side for the two-match T20I series against Ireland with fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar named as vice-captain.

Meanwhile, right-handed batter Rahul Tripathi, became the new entrant in the Indian squad, following his phenomenal run in the IPL this season.

Squad: Hardik Pandya (c), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik.

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