New T20 era for world champion India as it visits Zimbabwe for five-match series

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) - World champion India will usher in a new era as it takes on Zimbabwe in a five-match Twenty20 series starting Saturday at the Harare Sports Club.

Shubman Gill will lead India for the first time, with senior players rested in the aftermath of joyous celebrations of winning the T20 World Cup.

The 24-year-old batter, who led the Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League, returns to India's T20 eleven along with middle order bat Rinku Singh. The duo had missed out on the World Cup, but traveled to the West Indies and United States as reserve players.

"I learnt a lot when I captained in the IPL for the first time. It allowed me to learn about myself as a player and as a leader,” Gill said. "Captaincy is about mental challenges and how you prepare yourself as well as your teammates, because everyone has the desired skill set. It is about giving them enough confidence to deliver on the field."

Star batting duo Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced their retirements from international T20 after lifting the World Cup trophy in Barbados on June 29.

Ravindra Jadeja also announced his international retirement from the format, with world's No. 1 all-rounder Hardik Pandya, No. 1 batter Suryakumar Yadav and No. 1 fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah all gaining a well-earned rest.

Amid retirements and rested senior players, it is a huge opportunity for youngsters who will be eager to make the step-up to international cricket.

India's young squad consists of many budding superstars who have had an enriching experience in the IPL, including Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag and Tushar Deshpande.

Sharma lit up the IPL for Sunrisers Hyderabad, scoring 484 runs in 16 matches at strike-rate 204.22, while Parag scored 573 runs for Rajasthan Royals. Both are expected to start the series and gain their T20 debuts.

Among others expected to gain valuable T20 opportunities are prolific batter Ruturaj Gaikwad (skipper of Chennai Super Kings) as also spin all-rounder Washington Sundar and medium pacer Tushar Deshpande, who picked up 38 IPL wickets for Chennai in the past two seasons.

Sharma is set to open the innings with Gill in the first T20, with Gaikwad slotting in at number three.

"This is a very inexperienced side as compared to the one that won the T20 World Cup," Gill said. “Our aim is to give opportunities to as many players as possible - some have little international experience, while others are yet to make their debuts.

"We know Zimbabwe will come hard at us, like with other teams in this format," he added.

Keeper-batter Sanju Samson and opener Yashasvi Jaiswal were the only ones from the World Cup squad to be picked for this series. Batting all-rounder Shivam Dube was later included in place of 21-year-old all-rounder Nitish Reddy as the latter picked up an injury.

The trio, however, will not be available for the first two matches as the Indian team left Barbados late owing to a hurricane and only arrived in India on Thursday, sparking huge celebrations across the country. Instead, batters Sai Sudharsan and Jitesh Sharma as well as pacer Harshit Rana were added to India's squad for the first two T20s.

Zimbabwe announced a 17-man squad for the series led by Sikandar Raza. Senior players Craig Ervine and Sean Williams were not considered for selection, while 25-year-old Antum Naqvi is included subject to him gaining Zimbabwe citizenship.

This is Zimbabwe's third high-profile T20 series in 2024 having played against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh earlier.

India and Zimbabwe last faced each other in the 2022 T20 World Cup at Melbourne - the Men in Blue won by 71 runs.

Their previous bilateral engagement was in 2016 when India had toured for a three-match series. Overall, the two sides have played eight T20s, with India winning six matches.

Zimbabwe beat India 2-0 at home in their maiden T20 engagement back in 2010.

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Squads:

India: Shubman Gill (captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rinku Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, Tushar Deshpande, Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jitesh Sharma, Harshit Rana, Shivam Dube, Sai Sudharsan

Zimbabwe: Sikandar Raza (captain), Faraz Akram, Brian Bennett, Johnathan Campbell, Tendai Chatara, Luke Jongwe, Innocent Kaia, Clive Madande, Wessly Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Brandon Mavuta, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Antum Naqvi, Richard Ngarava, Milton Shumba.

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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket