Indian team incurred a blow on the eve of the three-match T20I contest against Bangladesh on Saturday as all-rounder Shivam Dube was ruled out of the contest owing to a back injury. The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee, hence, named young left-handed batter Tilak Varma as his replacement for the series.
Dube, who has emerged as an integral member of the Indian T20I set-up and was part of the T20 World Cup-winning side as well, incurred the injury during the practice session ahead of the series. With the Chennai Super Kings ruled out, India will feel his absence in the middle order for his left-handed batting, ability to hit sixes at will, and part-time fast-bowling variety. BCCI, however, did not disclose the extent of Dube’s injury.
Opportunity for Tilak Varma
The Mumbai Indian star burst into the international scene last year in August, when he scored 173 runs in the five-match series against West Indies, which comprised a half-century and an unbeaten 49. He later was picked in the Asian Games campaign and for the T20I series against Australia and South Africa later that year. Overall, he scored 336 runs in 16 appearances at 33.60, and picked two wickets.
However, he was overlooked for both the series against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka earlier this summer, and was not a first-choice option for the Bangladesh contest as well.
Tilak, who has continued to impress in domestic circuit and in IPL, will look to make the most of this opportunity to make a place for himself in the white-ball set-up. He will link up with the team in Gwalior on Sunday morning.
The three-match T20I series against Bangladesh will begin on Sunday. The second match will be played on October 9 in New Delhi and third on October 12 in Hyderabad.
India’s updated squad for the T20I series against Bangladesh: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Riyan Parag, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakaravarthy, JItesh Sharma (wk), Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Mayank Yadav, Tilak Varma.
