Shikhar Dhawan to lead India on limited-overs tour to Sri Lanka

NEW DELHI (AFP): Senior batsman Shikhar Dhawan was on Thursday named captain of a second-string Indian side which includes a host of IPL performers for the limited-overs series in Sri Lanka next month.

India will play three one-day internationals and three Twenty20 matches in the island nation starting July 13 in Colombo, according to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

The Indian Test team led by Virat Kohli are in England to face New Zealand for the World Test Championship final between June 18-22 and then stay on for a five-Test series against the hosts.

Up and coming Indian Premier League talent including Devdutt Padikkal (Royal Challengers Bangalore), Ruturaj Gaikwad (Chennai Super Kings), Suryakumar Yadav (Mumbai Indians) and Varun Chakravarthy (Kolkata Knight Riders) have been named in the 20-member squad.

Mumbai Indians opener Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson of Rajatshan Royals have been picked as wicketkeepers.

Dhawan, a left-handed opener, will be assisted by fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has been named vice-captain.

The final two ODI matches will be played on July 16 and 18 followed by the three T20 games on July 21, 23, and 25.

The 14th edition of the lucrative IPL T20 tournament was suspended as a new coronavirus wave hit India and will be finished in the United Arab Emirates in September and October.

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

Net bowlers: Ishan Porel, Sandeep Warrier, Arshdeep Singh, Sai Kishore, Simarjeet Singh