Sun Jan 12 09:20:00 UTC 2025: ## Suryakumar Yadav to Captain India in T20 Series Against England; Shami Returns

**Kolkata, India** – The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced a surprising squad for the upcoming five-match T20I series against England, starting January 22nd. The biggest headline is the return of veteran pacer Mohammed Shami, who makes his comeback after a year-long injury layoff. Shami’s inclusion is a major boost to India’s bowling attack.

However, Jasprit Bumrah has been rested for the series. Even more surprising is the captaincy selection: Suryakumar Yadav will lead the team, with Axar Patel serving as his deputy. Notably, Hardik Pandya, a regular in the team, has been omitted from the squad.

The squad retains several young players from previous T20I matches including Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel. Harshit Rana, who was previously in the squad but didn’t feature in the playing XI, also makes the cut. India’s pace attack will be spearheaded by Shami, Arshdeep Singh, and Rana, while the spin department will rely on Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, and Washington Sundar.

The series will begin in Kolkata on January 22nd, with subsequent matches in Chennai, Rajkot, Pune, and Mumbai. The full squad is: 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 Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (WK).

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