Rohit to lead India in T20 series against NZ, Rahul named deputy
The first T20 is scheduled for Jaipur on Nov. 17 followed by games in Ranchi on Nov. 19 and Kolkata on Nov. 21.
Opener Rohit Sharma will succeed Virat Kohli as India's T20 captain when they take on New Zealand in a three-match Twenty20 series at home this month as the country's cricket board (BCCI) announced a 16-man squad on Tuesday.
Fellow opener KL Rahul has been named Rohit's deputy.
Kohli had stepped down as captain in the run-up to the T20 World Cup, where India failed to make the semi-finals following two early losses to Pakistan and New Zealand.
Kohli has been rested against the Kiwis along with pacemen Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami, and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja.
The selectors have made a number of changes to the squad that featured in the United Arab Emirates, bringing in the likes of Ruturaj Gaikwad, Venkatesh Iyer, Avesh Khan and Harshal Patel, while dropping all-rounder Hardik Pandya.
The first T20 is scheduled for Jaipur on Nov. 17 followed by games in Ranchi on Nov. 19 and Kolkata on Nov. 21.
Squad:
Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, Mohd. Siraj
