WI vs IND: Sanju Samson replaces KL Rahul in India's T20I squad

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced Sanju Samson as the replacement for KL Rahul in the T20I squad to face West Indies for five T20Is, commencing on the 29th of July, Friday. The opening batter was expected to join the team for the series after recovering from his surgery but misses out due to Covid-19.

Earlier in the day, there was a slight confusion when Sanju Samson was included in the squad without any official announcement from the BCCI, but in the latest update, it has been confirmed that Samson will replace Rahul in the squad.

Samson, who was part of the Indian XI in the recently concluded three-match ODI series, was initially left out for the T20I series. Samson scored his maiden T20I half-century against Ireland last month and made great use of his opportunity in the ODI series against the West Indies, registering his maiden fifty in the format.

BCCI is taking no risks with KL Rahul and advised him to another week of rest

Meanwhile, KL Rahul, who enjoyed a fruitful campaign with the bat in IPL 2022, was ruled out of the T20I series against South Africa due to an injury and later underwent a sports hernia surgery in Germany. One of India’s indispensable performers, Rahul has been on the sidelines since the IPL 2022.

The ace opener continued his rehabilitation at the NCA in Bengaluru and was looking in great shape before heading to the island nation. However, he tested positive for Covid-19 just before leaving the country.

Although the Karnataka man completed his isolation period, he has been advised one more week’s rest and recuperation by BCCI’s medical team. He will likely feature for the Men in Blue in the ODI series against Zimbabwe ahead of the Asia Cup in the UAE later next month.

Updated India squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Ishan Kishan, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Shreyas Iyer, Dinesh Karthik, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh.