BCCI name THIS star as India's vice-captain for England T20Is; it's not Hardik Pandya, Sanju Samson or Tilak Varma

The recent BCCI selection meeting for the upcoming India versus England five-T20I series, which begins on January 22, was highlighted by the announcement of Mohammed Shami's return. Jasprit Bumrah, who led India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy Tests in Perth and Sydney, was rested for the series against England but there were more shocks in store.

Suryakumar Yadav will skipper the Men in Blue in the five-match series, with spinner Axar Patel serving as his deputy. Notably, Hardik Pandya has been excluded from the team.

Young players Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel have retained their places in the 20-over team. Harshit Rana, who was part of the T20I team against South Africa but did not participate, has also been added to the 15-man squad for the forthcoming series.

Mohammed Shami's return to the Men in Blue after a long hiatus will undoubtedly be a hot topic of conversation. The 34-year-old seamer makes a return to the national team after being away since 2023.

Shami's return follows a great domestic cricket season with Bengal, where he made a strong comeback from ankle surgery that sidelined him for nearly a year. His remarkable return to competitive cricket began when he was named to Bengal's Vijay Hazare Trophy team.

Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, and Mohammed Shami will lead India's seam bowling attack. Meanwhile, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, and Washington Sundar will undertake spin bowling duties.

The five-match T20I series is set to begin on January 22 in Kolkata. The second and third matches are scheduled for January 25 and 28 in Chennai and Rajkot, respectively. The fourth match will take place on January 31 in Pune, while the final game of the series will be hosted by Mumbai on February 2.

India’s squad for T20I series against England: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel (vc), Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Shami, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (wk).

Also read| Mohammed Shami returns as India announce squad for T20I series against England