T20 WC, India Squad: Shikhar Dhawan Missing, R Ashwin Returns. MS Dhoni Joins As Mentor, Announces BCCI

T20 World Cup, Team India Players List: The Indian team would be playing its first match against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup, scheduled for October 24.

(File Photo/ Getty Images)

ICC T20 World Cup: India has announced its 15-member squad for the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup. Brace yourselves for some surprises in the Indian squad. MS Dhoni is back in the squad as a mentor for the T20 WC! That's not it, Shikhar Dhawan, the long-time opener of India's limited overs' squad has been dropped and KL Rahul has been picked as a replacement. Veteran spinner Ravi Ashwin has also carved his way into the squad.

World Cup will be played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman from 17 October. The qualification matches start on the 17th while the main tournament begins on 23 October with Australia vs South Africa. 

TEAM - Virat Kohli (Capt), Rohit Sharma (vc), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohd Shami.#TeamIndia

— BCCI (@BCCI) September 8, 2021

The Indian team would be playing its first match against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup, scheduled for October 24. Team India would then take on New Zealand on October 31, Afghanistan on November 3, and the qualifying team (B-1) in Super 12 on November 5. 

The selection of the 15-member squad is a reflection of good performances not just in the Indian Premier League (IPL) but also in international matches as the team is being announced prior to the start of the remaining IPL 2021. Virat Kohli will lead the side, while Rohit Sharma will be his deputy. 

Team India Playing XI:  Virat Kohli [Captain], Rohit Sharma [Vice Captain], KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohd Shami.

Meanwhile, former Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni to join Indian Team as mentor in T20 World Cup.

The T20 World Cup was scheduled to be played in 2020, but due to the increasing threat of Covid-19, the World Cup was postponed to 2021. The venue of the matches also has been changed. Earlier, the matches were to be played in India, but again, due to Covid-19 restrictions in India, the tournament was scheduled to be played in UAE and Oman. 

Even though the venue has changed, India remains the host of the World Cup.