Team India has announced the 12-man squad for the first Australia T20. The first of the 3 games will be played at the Gabba, Brisbane on Wednesday. The visitors have named a strong squad on the eve of the first match.

Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan will be the trusted openers once again. KL Rahul is also in the squad. Now that Virat Kohli is back in the side, it will be interesting to see who bats at No.3 if Rahul plays. Previously, when these two were together in the line-up, Virat had sacrificed his No.3 slot for Rahul.

Manish Pandey misses out while Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik will constitute the middle-order. Also, Pant will don the gloves instead of Karthik who was responsible for the duties against Windies. When MS Dhoni was omitted from the T20 side against Windies, the selectors had mentioned that Pant would keep the wickets. But surprisingly, Pant was seen running on the outfield while Karthik stood behind the stumps.

Krunal Pandya, who was impressive in the Windies series, retains his place. Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Kuldeep Yadav are almost certain in the XI. It will come down to the last place. Khaleel Ahmed and Yuzvendra Chahal are the contenders for the last spot. Depending on the pitch, the call might be made. Khaleel did well against Windies while Chahal’s spin poses a threat to the Australians who are not known to be well equipped against spin.

India’s 12-man squad for the first Australia T20

Rohit Sharma (VC), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (C), Rishabh Pant (wk), Dinesh Karthik, Krunal Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Khaleel Ahmed, Yuzvendra Chahal

Also Read: India vs Australia, 1st T20, Match Prediction

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