'One of the most deserving players' - Twitter reacts as Arshdeep Singh makes India debut
Arshdeep was also in the squad for the series against South Africa and against Ireland, last month.
Arshdeep Singh, the 23-year-old Indian left-arm fast bowler from Punjab, made his much-awaited national team debut, as he received the cap from skipper Rohit Sharma ahead of the first T20I against England in Southampton. He was in the squad for the home series against South Africa last month and the subsequent away series against Ireland but did not receive any game time.
Notably, Arshdeep has shown his skills in the Indian Premier League (IPL), picking up 10 wickets for Punjab Kings (PBKS) at an economy of 7.70 in the 2022 edition. Overall, he has played 49 T20 matches overall and has picked up 52 wickets at an economy rate of eight.
Arshdeep first appeared in the IPL in 2019, playing for PBKS, and was retained for the following season by the franchise prior to the auction. The tall and slender bowler is known for his ability to swing the new ball and dart perfect yorkers in the slog overs. Hence, the pacer would be raring to make a mark at the highest level.
Sanju Samson, Umran Malik left out
Meanwhile, skipper Rohit Sharma has returned to the team after recovering from Covid-19 and will be opening with Ishan Kishan. Others in the Indian batting lineup are Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, and Dinesh Karthik, along with spin-bowling all-rounder Axar Patel. In the bowling department, India went with three pacers, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel and Arshdeep, and leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal.
For England, this will be Jos Buttler’s first assignment as the full-time captain of the team. Others in the England batting are Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Liam Livingstone and Harry Brook. England have gone with four fast bowlers, Sam Curran, Reece Topley, Tymal Mills, and Chris Jordan. The spinners on the day for England are all-rounder Moeen Ali and leggie Matt Parkinson.
This will be England’s first white-ball game since the retirement of their ex-captain Eoin Morgan. They have some notable absentees such as Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow, who appeared in the rescheduled fifth Test match against India at Edgbaston, Birmingham.
Meanwhile, here’s how Twitter congratulated Arshdeep Singh:
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