Nidahas Trophy 1st T20I: Probable India XI against Sri Lanka on March 6

Nidahas Trophy T20I: Probable India XI against Sri Lanka on March 6

Colombo, March 5: With an aim to stay in the selectors' eyes and keep themselves in contention for next year's World Cup, a second-string Indian team, led by Rohit Sharma, will begin yet another campaign in Sri Lanka by taking on the islanders in the opening match of the Tri-Nation Nidahas Twenty20 Cup, here on Tuesday (March 6).

With the big guns like Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, etc. being rested, a young looking Indian side would be taking on against spirited Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in the tri-nation series.

There might not be much at stake for the Indians in the T20I series but the tournament definitely offers an opportunity to the young guns to make most of the occasion by shining at the bigger stage.

For a bunch of youngsters, who will get to wear the India blues with as many as six top players being rested, would consider this a God-sent opportunity.

Rishabh Pant, Deepak Hooda and the Mohammed Siraj, Vijay Shankar, who otherwise would have been cooling their heels back home and waiting for their respective IPL camps to start, have now got an opportunity to showcase their talent.

For all those who are likely to get a game, there will be just one target -- to make most of their chances as some of them might not get too many with just about 16 months left for the ICC World Cup.

However, the presence of the likes of KL Rahul, Dinesh Karthik, Axar Patel would definitely give some tough times to the team management when they'll sit to pick the final playing eleven from the bunch of these talented youngsters.

They have mauled Sri Lanka on most of the occasions and stand-in captain Rohit Sharma will have plenty of reasons to remain upbeat about taking the trophy back home.

Rohit, who personally didn't have a memorable tour of South Africa, must be hoping to put some runs under his name in Sri Lanka where he slammed two ODI centuries last year.

Here's how India's Playing XI might look like in the first game against Bangladesh:

1. Rohit Sharma

Stand-in captain Rohit Sharma will have plenty of reasons to remain upbeat about taking the trophy back home. On a personal front, Rohit will be itching to get back to form after a poor South Africa tour where he managed only a single hundred in the one-dayers. In the familiar territory of Premadasa Stadium, Rohit will love to come out all guns blazing in the company of Shikhar Dhawan. Suresh Raina is slowly getting back into the groove at No 3.

Rohit slammed just one ton in the ODI series after remaining silent in the Test series and later failing to make it big in the T20Is as well.

2. Shikhar Dhawan

The senior opener looked in red hot form during the ODIs as well as the T20Is against South Africa. Shikhar Dhawan was in top-notch form in the limited-overs series and made of the occasions count.

Dhawan would once again open the Indian innings alongside Rohit and his team would be hoping another dominating performance from the southpaw against Sri Lanka.

3. Suresh Raina

Justifying his selection for the T20I series against South Africa, Suresh Raina played some brilliant cameos in all three games. The southpaw started hammering the bowlers from the word go and never let the bowlers settle for as long as he stayed at the crease.

Raina would once again come in to bat at No.3 against Sri Lanka in the 1st T20I to give Men In Blue some blistering starts if the first wicket perishes early.

Raina can play any kind of role as per the team's requirement and that's what makes him a crucial part of the limited-overs' set up.

4. Manish Pandey/KL Rahul

Manish Pandey performed well in the T20I series against South Africa and justified the team management's decision to give him a chance.

The Karnataka batsman, however, is often criticised for not remaining consistent and he would be eager to shun that tag. Pandey will definitely play in the Nidahas Trophy 2018.

KL Rahul has been struggling with his fitness and the presence of a rather settled top-order has resulted in him not getting too many chances in the limited-overs. The extremely talented Rahul may have to miss out if he is not allowed to open by the team management. With Raina back in the team, Rahul can only bat at No.4, where Manish Pandey has been staking the claim for quite some time now.

In the limited opportunities that Pandey has got, he has proved himself and this is the tournament where he can get an extended run.

5. Dinesh Karthik

The senior Tamil Nadu batsman got to play just one T20I match in South Africa and performed decently. The newly made Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain would get a chance to play in the Nidahas Trophy to bring some experience to the second-string Indian side.

However, there is a high possibility that the wicketkeeper-batsman might don the big gloves in the absence of MS Dhoni.

6. Rishabh Pant

The talented young batsman from Delhi has already been dubbed as the heir to MS Dhoni, but the youngster hasn't been given too much of opportunity in the national side.

In the absence of Dhoni, Pant can establish himself as an explosive batsman lower down the order and earn the reputation of a finisher.

Initially, the wicketkeeper-batsman might not be given the extra responsibility of donning the gloves.

7. Vijay Shankar

Tamil Nadu cricketer Vijay Shankar received India call-up for the upcoming Nidahas T20I Trophy. The cricketer, who is still taking nascent steps in international cricket, has been named as a replacement to fast-bowling all-rounder Hardik Pandya and he is eager to make it count on the opportunity at hand.

Being a seam-bowling all-rounder, the national selectors are looking at him as a substitute to Pandya and he must be eager to make it count at the big stage.

8. Washington Sundar

The young Tamil Nadu off-spinner might get a chance to play in the Nidahas Trophy in the absence of chinaman Kuldeep Yadav. As pitches in Sri Lanka assist the spinners, Rohit Sharma would take the liberty of playing with two spinners.

9. Yuzvendra Chahal

The wrist-spinner from Haryana emerged as a match winner for India in the ODI series against South Africa but proved very expensive in the T20Is.

Chahal would once again be hoping to trouble the batsman with his return to the sub-continental pitches.

10. Shardul Thakur

The young Mumbai pacer did well in the limited-overs series against South Africa and he would be leading the Indian pace attack in the absence of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah.

11. Jaydev Unadkat

The left-arm seamer would share the new ball with Shardul Thakur in the Nidahas Trophy. Unadkat did well in the South Africa series and team management would be hoping a similar performance from him in Sri Lanka.