VVS Laxman picks India's playing XI for 1st T20I

VVS Laxman picked Team India's playing eleven for the first T20 match against England. Considering the T20 World Cup scheduled to be played in India, the BCCI is keen on structuring a strong team for the showpiece event. The Men in Blue will take on England in a 5-match T20I series beginning from March 12.

Rohit Sharma is set to open the innings for the Indian cricket team. However, the spot for the second opening batsman has been a matter of concern for a while with two strong candidates: Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul. Dhawan is an experienced player who had a fantastic season in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020. On the other end, KL Rahul has also been one of the most prolific run-getters in the T20Is.

VVS Laxman snubs Suryakumar Yadav for first T20 match against England

KL Rahul has cemented his spot in the T20Is as a wicketkeeper-batsman, considering his rich vein of form lately. However, Rishabh Pant is expected to get the spot in the playing XI. In that case, India will be able to rope in only one batsman between Dhawan and Rahul.

Discussing on Star Sports show Game Plan, VVS Laxman selected Rahul ahead of Dhawan. He also named Rishabh Pant in his playing XI. Suryakumar Yadav is also anticipated to play his first international match. However, he did not find a spot in Laxman's playing XI for the first match. Laxman added pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who is making a comeback from injury.

VVS Laxman's playing XI for 1st T20I

KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, Axar Patel, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, T Natarajan

India's T20I series squad against England 

Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma (VC), Shreyas Iyer, Shikhar Dhawan, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan (WK), KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Rahul Tewatia, Rishabh Pant (WK), Shardul Thakur, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Varun Chakravarthy, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, T Natarajan, Yuzvendra Chahal, Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini

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