IND vs SL: 5 Deserving players who missed out on India's ODI and T20I squads

Team India will host Sri Lanka in a white-ball series which includes three T20Is and as many ODIs in January 2023 where the action will commence from January 3. The Men in Blue head into the bilateral series with skipper Rohit Sharma all set to return and will lead a new-look side ahead of the 2023 ODI World Cup on home soil.

While Rohit will lead the ODI component of the tour, Hardik Pandya will take the captaincy reigns for the three T20I matches. Hardik previously led the side to clinch the T20I series 1-0 against New Zealand in November. Furthermore, star batter Suryakumar Yadav marks his return to the side after being rested in the recently concluded series against Bangladesh and has been named as Hardik's deputy in the T20 format.

Speaking about the squads, with certain players making their comeback and with the addition of new faces, there have been a few deserving players who have not got the chance to represent the side in the series. Here is a list of five players who deserved to make the cut in the squad in the forthcoming series against the Lankan Lions-

5 Deserving Players who missed out on India's squad

5. Kuldeep Yadav (T20Is)

Kuldeep made headlines recently after marking his return to the national side in the red-ball format against Bangladesh. The left-arm spinner made a sensational comeback as he was adjudged as Player of the Match in the first Test as he relished bowling figures of 5/40 and 3/73 across innings and scored the vital knock of 40 runs.

Despite this, he was dropped from the second Test match and was replaced by Jaydev Unadkat for the side to have an extra seamer. In any case, speaking about the forthcoming series against the Islanders, Kuldeep was picked in the ODI squad but did not make the cut in the T20I side.

In 121 T20 matches, the spinner has added 149 wickets to his name with his best bowling figures being 5/17. His last T20I outing came against the West Indies in August wherein he racked up three wickets and gave mere 12 runs in his four overs with one maiden. Given that there have been new faces in the side making the cut, Kuldeep could have added value to the side had he made the cut in the T20I squad.