SL vs IND 2024: Why are Sanju Samson and Shivam Dube not playing first T20I?

Team India (IND) are locking horns with hosts Sri Lanka (SL) in the first T20I of the three-match series at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, in Kandy, on Saturday, July 27. Sri Lankan skipper Charith Asalanka called it correctly at the toss and opted to bowl first. The hosts didn't make any notable changes to their playing XI, however, they are without Dushmantha Chameera and Nuwan Thushara, who have already been ruled out of the series citing different reasons.

On the other hand, India entered the fray with some changes in their XI. They benched wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson and all-rounder Shivam Dube. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav didn't mention any reason for the omission, but Rishabh Pant was picked to don the gloves and young Riyan Parag was given a go-ahead of Dube for the middle-order spot. Both Samson and Dube were part of India's T20 World Cup winning squad last month, and also featured in the recent series against Zimbabwe.

“It (the pitch) looks good, and it is fine to bat first. The brand of cricket remains the same. The relationship me and him (Gambhir) have had for so many years is special. (Shivam) Dube, (Sanju) Samson, Khaleel (Ahmed), and Washington (Sundar) are the four players to miss out. That (World Cup) is history, we start from scratch, and it is a new challenge,” Yadav said at the toss.

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The Sri Lankan skipper looked optimistic for his side's chances with some new strategies and handing players with specific roles for desired results. 

“We are going to bowl first. It looks like a pretty good pitch, and we want to see how it goes. We are going with a 6-5 (batters-bowlers) combination. I want to give every player specific roles, and that's why we are going with 5 bowlers. You can expect more wins and more consistency,” Asalanka said at the toss.

Also Read: Charith Asalanka makes intentions clear ahead of first T20I against India

India (Playing XI): Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Rishabh Pant(w), Riyan Parag, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj

Sri Lanka (Playing XI):  Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis(w), Kusal Perera, Kamindu Mendis, Charith Asalanka(c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Dasun Shanaka, Maheesh Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana, Asitha Fernando, Dilshan Madushanka