Sanju Samson returns, Rinku Singh misses out as India announce Afghanistan T20I squad

NEW DELHI: Sanju Samson is back in the India T20I squad, while Rinku Singh has been left out as the BCCI announced the 15-member squad for the upcoming three-match series against Afghanistan on Tuesday.

The return of the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter and Jasprit Bumrah are the biggest talking points from the selection, while Rinku's omission comes as a notable call from the selectors.

Bumrah, who missed India's recent T20I assignments, has been included in the squad, but his participation is subject to fitness clearance. Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar and Harshit Rana are also subject to fitness.

Shreyas Iyer will lead the side, with Tilak Varma named vice-captain. Youngster Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has also been included in the squad.

All-rounder Hardik Pandya, meanwhile, has missed out after suffering a fresh injury setback during his rehabilitation. Recent reports said Pandya picked up a leg niggle while training at the BCCI Centre of Excellence, disrupting his comeback plans.

Samson's return comes after he was left out of India's T20I squad for the Zimbabwe tour. He now returns to the side, while Rinku, who had been part of India's recent T20I setup, has been omitted.

The three-match T20I series against Afghanistan is scheduled to begin on September 13 in New Delhi.

India squad

Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy*, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar*, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah*, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana*.

*Subject to fitness.