Indian skipper Virat Kohli also backed him as a wicketkeeper ahead of the first T20I and insisted that Rahul has performed well and the current combination brings the 'best balance to the side'.
Ishant Sharma has sustained an ankle tear and is doubtful for the upcoming Test series against New Zealand.
Washington Sundar, Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur were also handed BCCI annual central contracts on Thursday.
Team India are all gearing up for their toughest test this home season as they take on a formidable Australian side in a three-game ODI series starting January 14 in Mumbai.
Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan gained a place each in the ICC T20I rankings for batsmen while Navdeep Saini jumped 146 places to finish 98th in the latest rankings for bowlers.
Saini, who was the Man of the Match in the Indore T20I, impressed everyone in Pune again with his raw pace and disciplined line and length.
Navdeep Saini, who was named the Man of the Match in the second T20I in Indore, made an appearance in Yuzvendra Chahal's 'Chahal TV' alongside Shardul Thakur.
Saini bowled with searing pace on Tuesday and troubled the Lankan batsmen to return superb figures of 2/18 in four overs as India restricted Sri Lanka to 142/9 after choosing to field first.
Saini, has so far played an ODI and five T20 Internationals but Bumrah has either been rested or was out due to his stress fracture on lower back during these games.
Here are the players, who will under a lot of scanners during three-match T20I series between India and Sri Lanka.
27-year-old Navdeep Saini made his ODI debut in the final game of the three-match series against West Indies in Cuttack.
Deepak Chahar felt a mild pain in his lower back during the second ODI and was adviced to rest.
India pacer Navdeep Saini claimed three wickets as Delhi defeated Baroda by 10-runs in a rain-curtailed Elite Group B match of the Vijay Hazare.
Navdeep Saini shined for Delhi, taking four wickets but rain played spoilsport just as Delhi came to bat.
Former Indian fast bowler Zaheer Khan, while talking about India's pace department, has singled out one bowler who he wants to see in the longest format of the game.
Delhi start their campaign on the opening day against Vidarbha and it is expected that both the players will be available for the initial matches.
In an exclusive interview with India TV, Navdeep Saini talked about his international debut against West Indies, the T20I series against South Africa and the strength of the Indian pace attack.
Team India cricketers Rishabh Pant, Shikhar Dhawan and Navdeep Saini have confirmed their availability for Delhi for the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Navdeep Saini impressed on his limited-overs outing with Team India against West Indies, but admitted that he will have to work harder to get into the Test squad.
Navdeep Saini has earlier been the Indian team's net bowler and a cover for Bhuvneshwar Kumar during the ICC World Cup in England as well.
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