Rishabh Pant was named as the India wicketkeeper in a 12-man shortlist for the first Twenty20 International against Australia at the Gabba in Brisbane on Wednesday.
Pant had played as a batsman, while Dinesh Karthik had the gloves on behind the sticks during India’s three-match Twenty20 International series at home against the West Indies earlier this month.
However, perhaps with an eye on the four-Test series against Australia after the T20s, the Indian team management has decided to give Pant a chance at keeping wickets in coloured clothing as well. Karthik was also named in the XII, but will play as a batsman if picked.
Batsman Manish Pandey and all-rounder Washington Sundar were the two players who played in the third T20I against West Indies but did not find a spot in the XII against Australia. Pacer Umesh Yadav and batsman Shreyas Iyer are also in India’s 16-man T20I squad for the series, but won’t feature in Brisbane.
India and Australia will play three T20Is ahead of the Test series.
India’s XII:
Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli (c), KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (wk), Dinesh Karthik, Krunal Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Khaleel Ahmed, Yuzvendra Chahal.
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