Analysis Of India's Squad vs Sri Lanka

The Indian limited-overs squad for the Sri Lanka tour has been announced by BCCI yesterday and they have done a really good job in presenting opportunities to the deserving ones. The squad has been picked based on the performances in the domestic season and the IPL 2021 while the seniors have been retained.

The three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka is set to start on 13 July and it is followed by a three-match T20 series. The tour ends on 25th July and a lot of players have earned their maiden call up to the Indian side for the series. Here is the analysis of India’s 20 member squad to face Sri Lanka.

Analysis Of India’s Squad vs Sri Lanka:

Shikhar Dhawan(C):

Shikhar Dhawan has been picked as the captain of the Indian side for the Sri Lanka tour and he has been an outstanding limited-overs player for India at the top of the order. Dhawan’s numbers in the last two seasons of IPL have been staggering and he deserves to be the captain of the side with 380 runs in 8 games in the IPL 2021 for Delhi Capitals. He has got the experience under his belt and has been playing with a lot of freedom in the last two years or so.

Prithvi Shaw:

Prithvi Shaw’s numbers have been mind-blowing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy where he topped the charts with 827 runs in 8 matches at an average of 165.40. He continued his rich form into the IPL 2021 for the Delhi Capitals with 308 runs in 8 games to finish fourth in the race for the orange cap. He has done everything possible to get back into the Indian team in the last three months.

Devdutt Padikkal:

Devdutt Padikkal has also been in great form in the last two years for Karnataka as well as in IPL too. Padikkal finished second in the top run-scorers in the Vijay Hazare Trophy with 737 runs in 7 matches at an average of 147.40 and he also impressed in the IPL 2021 with 195 runs in the 6 games for RCB. He brought up his maiden IPL century against the best bowlers in the world and showed that he belongs to the international stages.

Ruturaj Gaikwad:

Ruturaj Gaikwad had been very consistent for Chennai Super Kings at the top of the order and he continued from where he left in the previous IPL season. Gaikwad scored 196 runs in 7 games this season and he formed a lot of excellent partnerships alongside Faf Du Plessis. His talent has been evident in the IPL and he should be one of the backup openers in the squad.

Suryakumar Yadav:

Suryakumar Yadav is already in the scheme of things for the T20 Worldcup and he has done really well for India in the limited opportunities he has got. Yadav scored 173 runs in 7 IPL games this season and finished as the second-highest run-scorer for Mumbai Indians this season. He has played just two T20 internationals scoring 89 runs at an average of 44.5 and a strike rate of 185.4 and he should hold the number three spot in the batting lineup.

Manish Pandey:

Manish Pandey’s strike rate in this IPL was a major concern but he did manage to score 193 runs in 5 games and finished as their second-highest run-getter. He was dropped from the Indian limited-overs squad for the previous series against England but he has played 39 T20 internationals scoring 709 runs at an average of 44.3 and a strike rate of 126.

His overall numbers in T20s suggest that he should make the Indian squad and he could bat at number four.

Hardik Pandya:

Hardik Pandya was the player of the series in the three-match T20 series against Australia and he has been a match-winner with the bat even if he isn’t bowling. He is going to be a key player for India in the T20 Worldcup at number six and the management will be looking to give him a lot more game time. Pandya is an impact player and he has retained his position in the squad.

Nitish Rana:

Nitish Rana earned his maiden call up to the Indian limited-overs side after some excellent performances in the Vijay Hazare Trophy with 398 runs in 5 games at an average of 66.3 and finished as the fifth-highest run-getter in the tournament. He also continued his good work into the IPL 2o21 with 201 runs in 7 games and finished as the top scorer for the Kolkata Knight Riders franchise. He provides the left-hander option in the middle order.

Ishan Kishan(WK):

Ishan Kishan will be the first choice wicketkeeper option in the Indian limited-overs side for Sri Lanka and he impressed in his T20 debut against England with a half-century. He can play in the top order as well as in the middle order and he will be fighting for a spot in the T20 Worldcup. He deserves his chance in the Indian squad again despite his average performance in IPL 2021.

Sanju Samson(WK):

Sanju Samson lost his place in the Indian T20 side after failing to perform but he has been in fine touch after becoming the captain of the Rajasthan Royals side in the IPL 2021. He finished as the fifth-highest run-getter in the IPL 2021 with 277 runs in 7 games and will be the backup wicketkeeper option for the Sri Lanka series.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar(VC):

Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been appointed as the vice-captain of the Indian squad and he deserves it for his consistent performances for India in limited-overs games. He had an excellent series against England in the recent limited-overs series matches and he is the senior pro in the team too. He will be a key player in the T20 Worldcup for India and this will be some much-needed game time for him.

Yuzvendra Chahal:

Yuzvendra Chahal has been pretty ordinary in the last few months for India as well as for Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2021. However, he still is the number one leg spinner in the country and he can be a game-changer when he gets it right. His overall numbers in limited-overs matches is too good to be ignored and he should make the playing XI in both the formats as the first-choice spinner.

Rahul Chahar:

Rahul Chahar hasn’t had many opportunities in the Indian colors but he has been able to impress in the few games he has played and he had an excellent IPL season with 11 wickets in 7 games for Mumbai Indians and finished as the fourth-highest wicket-taker in the tournament. Chahar is expected to get a lot more opportunities in the Sri Lanka series and he could be on the verge of making it the T20 Worldcup side too.

K Gowtham:

Krishnappa Gowtham has been with the Indian team as a net bowler for a long time now and he has earned his maiden call up to the Indian side for the Sri Lanka series. He was picked up by Chennai Super Kings in this auction for a hefty amount of 9.2 crores but couldn’t make the playing XI but he has always had the potential to be a match-winner.

With no Jadeja, Sundar available, it was wise to give an opportunity to K Gowtham who has been around domestic cricket since 2011.

Krunal Pandya:

Krunal Pandya has been picked up as the all-rounder in the limited-overs series against Sri Lanka and he already had an excellent debut for India in the 50 over games against England recently. Krunal had an excellent Vijay Hazare Trophy with 388 runs in 5 games at an average of 129.33 and he also contributes a lot with his left-arm spin. He will be a useful option in the middle over for India.

Kuldeep Yadav:

Kuldeep Yadav was dropped from the Indian test team for the England tour and he will get his chances against Sri Lanka in the limited-overs series to redeem himself. The left-arm chinaman couldn’t make the playing XI for Kolkata Knight Riders too but he is an exceptional talent and he needs to get back his rhythm to be the match-winner he was for India.

Varun Chakravarthy:

Varun Chakravarthy deserves to be in the Indian limited-overs squad as he has been missing out on the Indian team after dealing with injuries and fitness tests. He has been very impressive in the last two seasons of the IPL with 7 wickets in the 7 games in IPL 2021 and overall his economy rate in IPL has been just 7.34. He is a wicket-taking bowler and should get his Indian cap to show his skills with the ball.

Deepak Chahar:

Deepak Chahar is expected to take the new ball alongside Bhuvneshwar Kumar and he hasn’t had many opportunities despite performing in the few games he has played. Chahar picked up 8 wickets in the 7 games in IPL 2021 and he can be very useful in the powerplay with his ability to move the ball both ways. His overall numbers for India in limited-overs internationals have been good and he deserves a place in the team.

Navdeep Saini:

Navdeep Saini had an excellent start to his international career but has fallen off the pecking order and he needs to address his shortcomings in this series against Sri Lanka. The 28-year-old has played 7 ODIs and 10 T20s so far and he has hit the batsmen hard with his raw pace. He has been picked up as the third seamer for the Sri Lanka series and he deserves another chance to prove his potential.

Chetan Sakariya:

Chetan Sakariya has been picked as the back up seamer after his excellent season in the Syed Mushtaq Ali 2021 with 12 wickets in 5 games for Saurashtra. He brings a left-arm option into the Indian bowling attack and he picked up 7 wickets in the 7 IPL games in this edition with an economy rate of just over 8. He bowled the tough overs for the Rajasthan Royals and his variations in the death overs was very impressive.