Kuldeep Yadav’s quest to cement his spot in the T20I squad was halted after he was ruled out of the five-match series against South Africa, which starts tonight (June 9). The left-arm spinner had made his comeback in the national squad earlier this year but wasn’t a confirmed selection in the playing XI.
Courtesy of his dream run in IPL 2022, where he scalped 21 wickets, Kuldeep looked set to star with Yuzvendra Chahal right from game 1. But a blow on his hand before the opening T20I ruled out him of the series. Kuldeep isn’t a part of the Test squad for the England tour and is likely to return for 2 T20Is against Ireland.
Before the start of the opening T20I against SA, the youngster cheered for Team India and shared a message for the Men in Blue.”Disappointed to miss out on the SA series due to an injury, but I am sure the boys will give their best on the pitch, and I am backing them all the way. Looking forward to coming back stronger,” Kuldeep wrote on Instagram.
Apart from Kuldeep, Team India is also without the services of KL Rahul. Originally slated to lead the team, Rahul has been ruled out due to a groin injury.
In his absence, Rishabh will make his T20I captaincy debut at his home ground. He will be assisted by Hardik Pandya, who recently captained Gujarat Titans to an IPL title win.
The opening T20I will be played in Delhi from 7:00 PM IST. Cuttack, Vizag, Rajkot and Bengaluru will host the next four games on June 12, 14, 17 and 19, respectively.
