Kolkata Knight Riders’ ace leg-spinner Varun Chakravarthy was on Monday rewarded for his good performance in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as he was named as the lone new face in the Indian T20 squad for the upcoming tour of Australia, the Indian cricket board announced on Monday.
The national selectors elevated Kings XI Punjab captain KL Rahul to vice-captaincy – he is the main wicket-keeper – of the T20 team. Sanju Samson, who is also having a fine IPL for Rajasthan Royals, is also named as a wicket-keeper in the 16-member squad.
“The selection committee met via video-conference on Monday to select the Indian cricket team for the upcoming Tour of Australia. Team India will take part in three T20Is, three ODIs and four Test matches against Australia,” said the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in a statement.
The itinerary of the tour is yet to be announced, but the tour is expected to be played between November 27 and January 19.
The BCCI said that four additional bowlers — Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kartik Tyagi, Ishan Porel, and T. Natarajan – would travel with the Indian contingent to Australia.