Team India announce 16-member squad for West Indies ODIs, Shikhar Dhawan named captain

Team India has announced their 16-player squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against West Indies, which gets underway on July 22. Shikhar Dhawan has been named the captain of the squad as several prominent players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah and Rishabh Pant have been rested. Notably, Ravindra Jadeja will be Dhawan’s deputy in the series and he’ll be raring to make a mark.

Notably, Team India is currently gearing up to take on hosts England in three ODIs and as many T20Is. While the selectors have named a strong squad for the England series, big guns have been rested for West Indies ODIs. Meanwhile, the Caribbean tour also comprises of five T20Is and the regulars are expected to return for the series, given the T20 World Cup 2022 is just a few months away.

This will be Dhawan’s second spell as Indian captain as he led a second-string team in the Sri Lanka tour last year. While the Men in Blue clinched the ODI series 2-1, they lost the T20I series 1-2. Not to forget, the national selectors have been preferring Dhawan only for ODIs lately and the southpaw must look to make the most of this opportunity.

Besides Dhawan and Jadeja, the likes of Suryakumar Yadav, Axar Patel and Shreyas Iyer are also in the squad, who have proven their mettle in the international arena. Moreover, Shreyas has the experience of leading IPL teams and given he’s 27, many expected him to lead the national team in the absence of first-choice players.

Hardik Pandya left out

Meanwhile, all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who led India in Ireland T20Is last month, is the most notable omission from the squad. While the reason behind his absence is unclear, selectors might have taken his fitness issues into consideration. At the same time, the likes of Sanju Samson, Deepak Hooda, and Ishan Kishan have been given a chance and they would not like to miss out.

India’s squad for West Indies ODIs: Shikhar Dhawan (C), Ravindra Jadeja (VC), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Prasidh Krishna, Mohd Siraj, Arshdeep Singh