The Indian cricket team will play a three-match ODI series and a three-match T20 series against Srilanka starting from 13th July at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. This series is a good opportunity for all the young cricketers to show their talent and impress the national selectors ahead of the T20 World Cup.
SL vs Ind: India’s squad: Shikhar Dhawan (Captain), Prithvi Shaw, Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Suryakumar Yadav, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Nitish Rana, Ishan Kishan (Wicket-keeper), Sanju Samson (Wicket-keeper), Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, K Gowtham, Krunal Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (Vice-captain), Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini, Chetan Sakariya
So, here we look at 5 Indian players who could stand out during the SL vs Ind series
1. Devdutt Padikkal
The RCB opener is likely to make his international debut against Sri Lanka. Devdutt Padikkal has been consistent for the last 2 years be it Domestic cricket or IPL. This man is been in flying form. In Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2020-21, Padikkal scored 218 runs in 6 matches at an average of 43.60.
Padikkal made his debut in IPL 2020 and played some match-winning knocks for his side. He was also the highest run-scorer for Royal Challengers Bangalore. He smashed 473 runs in 15 matches including 5 half-centuries. The 20-year-old was also awarded the emerging player of the year award in IPL 2020. And in IPL 2021, he hit an incredible century against Rajasthan Royals.
And in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21, he smashed 4 centuries, 3 half-centuries, and scored 737 runs in 7 matches with a whopping average of 147. He was the 2nd highest run-scorer only behind Prithvi Shaw who scored 827 runs in 8 matches.
2. Surya Kumar Yadav
Suryakumar Yadav has recently announced himself in international cricket in style by scoring a magnificent half-century on debut against England. In the last 3-4 years, he was scoring tons of runs in the domestic circuit which led him to an India call. He has played a key role in Mumbai Indians winning campaigns.
Surya has been very consistent throughout the domestic seasons. He has scored 400+ runs for the consecutive three years for Mumbai Indians (2018,2019,2020). And the most important thing is these runs came at a very healthy strike rate of 140+. Surya Kumar Yadav is likely to play at No.3 or No.4 in the upcoming SL vs Ind series.
3. Manish Pandey
Manish Pandey has been added to the Indian squad for the Srilanka tour. The SRH batsman did not have a great IPL. He scored 425 runs in 16 matches at a Strike rate of 127 in IPL 2020. There were many questions raised over his strike rate during the IPL. And he was also dropped from the side for the same.
In the IPL 2021, Pandey scored 193 runs in 5 matches at a strike rate of 123. He is one of the fittest members of the Indian side and also an excellent fielder. He will be one of the key players on this tour for India in the middle order.
4. Kuldeep Yadav
Kuldeep Yadav’s career has been up and down since the 2019 World Cup. He has been in and out of the team continuously. The Chinaman couldn’t able to grab the opportunities. And with him being the senior member of this squad on this tour with Chahal, Kuldeep will look to improve his performance.
Kuldeep has been working hard on his game as well putting hard yards on his fitness. He was once a regular did not feature for his franchise Kolkata Knight Riders this season. But he will be fully motivated to bounce back and this series is a good chance for him to show his worth. We can also see the ‘Kul-Cha’ playing together once again. The partnership was very effective for India in the middle overs as both used to create pressure and took wickets at regular intervals.
5. Prithvi Shaw
Prithvi Shaw has been in sublime form since his return from Australia. The opening batsman has scored over 827 runs in 8 innings in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, including four big hundreds at an unbelievable average of 165.
Shaw was badly criticized for his technique on the Australian tour by cricket experts. But he has impressed each and everyone in the Vijay Hazare trophy and as well as in the IPL. He came back from Australia and worked hard with his coach Pravin Amre.
Prithvi scored 308 runs in 8 matches at a strike rate of 166. And more importantly, he looked more confident and played his natural game. Shaw will look to make the most of this opportunity during SL vs Ind series.