Saba Karim urges Gautam Gambhir to include this player for Sri Lanka series

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The window of opportunity has opened for a few Indian youngsters in T20 format, especially after the retirement of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja.

The young brigade has already showcased their talent in the Zimbabwe T20 series by registering an emphatic 4-1 victory.

Former national selector Saba Karim believes that for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka, Gautam Gambhir should choose Jaiswal and Gill as openers. Karim suggests that these two can fill the gaps left by Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who retired from T20Is after India's second T20 World Cup win in the Caribbean.

Karim also emphasised the importance of including Abhishek Sharma in the squad for the Sri Lanka series.

"The most important positions will be in the top order only. I feel the selectors should go with these two (Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill) only," Saba Karim said to Sony Sports.

Apart from that, he has also given his thought on Abhishek Sharma. The southpaw scored a hundred in Zimbabwe and the former selector believes Sharma must get a chance in the squad.

"I feel Abhishek Sharma should get a place at least in the 15 because you have Rishabh Pant at No. 3 and Suryakumar Yadav at No. 4," Karim added.

India will be touring Sri Lanka later this month for three T20Is and three ODIs. The tour marks Gambhir's first assignment as head coach, and India will have a new T20I captain for this series.

"It also depends on who is the captain in T20Is. Gautam Gambhir is the head coach, so what is the thinking of the captain and head coach, and how they want to take the team forward. They will have to select players accordingly. Ruturaj Gaikwad is also there. So many players are staking a claim in the top order," Karim added.

The upcoming series against Sri Lanka presents an opportunity for India to test its new leadership dynamics and player combinations under Gambhir's guidance.