Right arm fast bowler Mohamed Shami has been excluded from India’s playing eleven for the first T20I against England at Eden GardensCalcutta. Despite expectations that he would return to international cricket after recovering from injury, Shami’s absence has raised eyebrows among fans.
Reasons for Mohammed Shami’s exclusion
The decision to leave Shami out of the team comes as India opts to heavily back their spin department for this match. Captain Suryakumar Yadav revealed that the team management decided to include only one specialist pacemaker, Arshdeep Singhwhile relying on all-round bowling Hardik Pandya and Nitish Kumar Reddy.
“The wicket looks sticky, there will be dew later. It will be heavier later.” Yadav said at the toss. “The selection is a good headache, sticking to our strengths” he said when asked about Shami’s absence.
Meanwhile, England made several changes to their T20I team and named Brendon McCullum as his new white ball coach. With a lineup packed with batting powerhouses, the team looks formidable on paper and promises an explosive start to the first T20I.
“It looks like a good ground, I’m sure it will be a good game. There will be some dew around. “It is a great field, it is an honor to play against India in these conditions.” said the England captain yes butler after losing the toss. “McCullum takes charge and has a lot of experience. It’s going to be a challenge, we are prepared for it. “There is incredible talent on both sides.” he added.
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IND vs ENG: Playing XI of both teams
India: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy
England: Ben Duckett, Philip Salt (wk), Jos Buttler (c), Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Overton, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood
