Shubman Gill was a surprise inclusion in Scott Styris' 15-member squad for India at the T20 World Cup later this year.
The shortest format of the game is in major focus this year, as the T20 World Cup returns after four years in 2020. Australia will host the ninth edition of the tournament in October/November this year. Team India kickstarted the calendar year with the ongoing T20I series against Sri Lanka, and will take part in a five-match T20I series later this month in New Zealand.
The side's preparations for the T20 World Cup began soon after the end of their campaign in the fifty-over tournament last year. In the last year, the team oversaw major chopping-and-changing in the playing XIs in T20Is, with new names coming in.
Even in the series against Sri Lanka, the management gave rest to the side's vice-captain Rohit Sharma, allowing out-of-form opener Shikhar Dhawan to make a return to the side.
On Wednesday, former Indian cricketer VVS Laxman put out his 15-member squad for India for the T20 World Cup. Now, former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris has also named his Indian squad for the tournament.
The big similarity in both the squads? Absence of MS Dhoni.
Dhoni's future in the Indian team has been subject to significant speculation ever since the 2019 World Cup. While Dhoni has not given an official word over his future with the team, coach Ravi Shastri has hinted that his performances in the IPL 2020 could be the benchmark for his selection in the global T20 tournament.
However, Styris' squad also had a few big surprises. The former Kiwi all-rounder included Shubman Gill in his squad, who is yet to make a T20I appearance for India. He also named Sanju Samson, who is yet to make it to playing XI despite being named in Indian T20I squads for series against Bangladesh, West Indies and Sri Lanka.
Styris excluded Shivam Dube and Washington Sundar from his 15-member squad, opting to go with three pacers in Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini and Deepak Chahar. Manish Pandey also failed to find a place in Styris' squad.
Here's Scott Styris' 15-men squad for India at the T20 World Cup:
Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (C), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, Sanju Samson, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini, Deepak Chahar
