Last Updated:January 11, 2025, 21:03 IST

The BCCI has announced India’s squad for the upcoming five-match T20I series against England.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has announced India’s squad for the upcoming five-match T20I series against England, set to begin on January 22, later this month.

The BCCI revealed India’s 15-man squad for the five-match affair. Mohammed Shami makes his highly anticipated return to the national team after over a year. The veteran pacer last played for the Men in Blue during the 2023 ODI World Cup final against Australia and since has been out of action.

Shami’s inclusion for the T20I games will likely act as a testing ground for his fitness as the Indian selectors would want to ensure that the pacer is good to go for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025.

Suryakumar Yadav, as expected will lead the side but an interesting change that has been made is Axar Patel being handed the vice-captaincy role for the upcoming series.

Dhruv Jurel has been chosen as India’s backup wicketkeeper,  with Sanju Samson being the leading choice for the role. Jurel last played a T20I during the away series against Zimbabwe. He has only played two T20Is and is yet to make a big impact with the bat.

After making his Test debut in Australia, it remains to be seen if Harshit Rana will get a look in. He had been called up for the recent T20I series against Bangladesh but did not feature, the upcoming five games could serve as a chance to make his T20I debut.

Varun Chakravarthy keeps his spot in the T20I squad as the mystery-spinner is in his best form. After being the leading wicket-taker in the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League, he has continued showing his class with the ball after making his return to the national side. He recently had a stellar outing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy where he picked up a fifer against Rajasthan in the pre-quarterfinal clash.

The five games are set to be held in Kolkata, Chennai, Saurashtra, Pune and Mumbai respectively.

India’s T20I Squad vs England:  Suryakumar Yadav (C), Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel (vc), Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Shami, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (wk).