MS Dhoni Meets Hardik Pandya Led Indian Team Ahead Of 1st T20I Against NZ in Ranchi | Watch Viral Video

Both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are not playing the T20I series against the blackcaps due to the upcoming Border Gavaskar series against Australia.

Ranchi: Former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni meets the Indian Cricket team and is currently practicing in Ranchi ahead of the first T20I against New Zealand.

Hardik Pandya is leading the Indian T20I squad in absence of regular skipper Rohit Sharma. Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, and Mohammed Shami are being rested, the likes of Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan and Kuldeep Yadav will get an extended run before they assemble for Test series camp at Nagpur from February 2.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who announced retirement from all forms of International cricket was spotted with team India during their training session at Ranchi. The video was shared by BCCI and it got viral on Social space, here is the video:

Look who came visiting at training today in Ranchi – the great @msdhoni! 😊#TeamIndia | #INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/antqqYisOh

— BCCI (@BCCI) January 26, 2023

There is also the welcome addition of attacking Mumbai opener Prithvi Shaw, who returns to the team on the back of a series of superlative performances in the domestic cricket including a record-breaking 379 against Assam in the Ranji Trophy.

It’s been over a year since the 23-year-old last played for India in July 2021 — and it remains to be seen if Pandya is tempted to fiddle his set opening combination of Gill and wicketkeeper batter Ishan Kishan.

Squads

India: Hardik Pandya (c), Suryakumar Yadav (vc), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, Shivam Mavi, Prithvi Shaw, Mukesh Kumar

New Zealand: Mitchell Santner (c), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Dane Cleaver (wk), Devon Conway (wk), Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Ben Lister, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Michael Rippon, Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner