Gautam Gambhir leaves out Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, names new opening pair for T20Is

Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and Virat Kohli were some of the big names who were excluded from India’s T20I squad, which will face New Zealand later this month. The Kiwis are scheduled to tour India for a three-match ODI series, followed by a three-game T20I series from January 18 to February 1. India will continue their preparations for the ICC Men's ODI World Cup 2023 under the captaincy of Rohit in the ODI series before Hardik Pandya leads the Men In Blue in the T20I series.

Meanwhile, speaking to Star Sports ahead of the final ODI against Sri Lanka, Gambhir mentioned that Prithvi Shaw should be given an extended run in the 20-over format at the top of the order. Shaw received his first India call-up in 537 days on the back of some great performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy last season. Most recently, Shaw made headlines for smashing a record triple century in a Ranji Trophy match.

"He is young, he is explosive and he is a match-winner"

“He shouldn’t have been out anyway as whenever he has got an opportunity, he has given India that kind of an explosive start. He is the right guy. He, Ishan Kishan, and Suryakumar Yadav perfectly fit the template India keep talking about. Now that you have picked Shaw, persist with him. Don’t judge him by every series. He is young, he is explosive and he is a match-winner. So pick him in the playing XI and give him a longer run,” Gambhir said.

On the other hand, the 2011 World Cup-winning player also mentioned that Shubman Gill should focus on Test and ODI cricket for now, while Ishan and Prithvi should be the regular openers in the T20Is. “Shubman Gill needs to concentrate on Test and ODI cricket. Prithvi Shaw and Ishan Kishan should be your permanent openers in T20Is,” Gambhir said. 

India's squad for the ODI and T20I series against New Zealand

India’s ODI squad against New Zealand: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan (wk), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, KS Bharat (wk), Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umran Malik.

India’s T20I squad against New Zealand: Hardik Pandya (Captain), Suryakumar Yadav (vice-captain), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, Shivam Mavi, Prithvi Shaw, Mukesh Kumar.