Hardik Pandya set to be ruled out, Suryakumar Yadav to be named skipper for Australia T20Is: Report

Hectice international calendar is upon us and within four days after the World Cup 2023 final, India and Australia are scheduled to lock horns in the five-match T20I series starting from November 23. Cricket Australia has already announced the visiting team's squad for the bilateral series with six players from World Cup part of it.

However, team India is set to announce a second string squad for the series as most of the players featuring in the World Cup set to get rest. In normal circumstances, Hardik Pandya would've led the side in the shortest format but the all-rounder is yet to recover from the injury sustained in the mega event and according to Indian Express, has been ruled out not only from the Australia series but also from the subsequent South Africa tour.

It has also been reported that Suryakumar Yadav could be named the captain for the upcoming T20I series against Australia. He was



the vice-captain of the team in the West Indies T20Is and hence, can be elevated to the captaincy role. There is also an outside chance for Ruturaj Gaikwad to become the captain after leading to the Gold medal in the Asian Games in Hangzhou, however, that will happen only if Surya opts for rest.

The report also states that Ishan Kishan and Prasidh Krishna who are part of the World Cup squad will not be rested. While Kishan hasn't played since the 47-run knock against Afghanistan with Shubman Gill getting fit, Krishna was the late addition to the setup after Hardik Pandya got ruled out due to ankle injury.

As far as the T20I series between India and Australia is concerned, the opening game will be played in Vizag, the caravan will then move to Thiruvananthapuram and Guwahati for the second and third T20I respectively while the last two matches of the series will take place in Nagpur and Hyderabad.