T20 World Cup 2022: BCCI announces India's squad for the tournament

After the disappointment of the 2022 Asia Cup, the Indian team has set their sights on the T20 World Cup in Australia, commencing next month. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the 15-member squad for the ICC mega event, with Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel making their return to the squad after recovering from their respective injuries. 

India will be playing two limited-overs series at home against Australia and South Africa before heading to the showcase event in Australia. Rohit Sharma will lead the side with KL Rahul as his deputy in the playing XI. Former Indian skipper Virat Kohli, who rediscovered his form with a scintillating maiden T20I ton against Afghanistan, will form the spine of the team alongside the trailblazing Suryakumar Yadav.

Hardik Pandya has been joined by Axar Patel in the all-rounder contingent after the unfortunate injury to Ravindra Jadeja during the Asia Cup. Deepak Hooda has also retained his place in the squad. It will be interesting to see how the Men in Blue utilize the two wicketkeeper-batters, Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik, in the upcoming tournament.

Pant had a woeful time in the recently-concluded Asia Cup and was picked ahead of Dinesh Karthik to provide more balance to the team as a left-handed batter. Meanwhile, Karthik did not have enough chance to prove his worth as a finisher and will be keen to have a much bigger role in the T20 World Cup.

R Ashwin picked as third spinner

The spin twins Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal will play an important role Down Under with their immense experience in the shortest format of the game. The return of ace fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel provides a much-needed boost to the Indian bowling lineup, which underperformed in the Asia Cup. 

Veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who redeemed himself with a scintillating bowling display against Afghanistan, will be India's biggest threat with the new ball, while the young Arshdeep Singh will be hoping to continue his death bowling exploits in Australia. The squad includes four reserves in Mohammed Shami, Shreyas Iyer, Ravi Bishnoi, Deepak Chahar.

India's squad for T20 World Cup 2022

Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul (VC), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, R Pant (WK), Dinesh Karthik (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvenshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh

Standby players: Mohammed Shami, Shreyas Iyer, Ravi Bishnoi, Deepak Chahar

Meanwhile, India will also be hosting Australia and South Africa for three T20Is each in the buildup to the mega event in Australia. The squads for those two assignments include all the usual suspects, with T20 World Cup standby Shami and Chahar included in both.

However, Arshdeep will miss Australia series while Hardik and Bhuvneshwar will be absent from South Africa assignment as they "will be reporting to the NCA for conditioning-related work", the BCCI confirmed.

India Squad for Australia T20Is

Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul (VC), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Harshal Patel, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah

India squad for South Africa T20Is

Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul (VC), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dinesh Karthik (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami, Harshal Patel, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah