Yuzvendra Chahal dons India mask on arrival at UAE after exclusion from India's WC squad

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday announced the 18-member squad for the upcoming ICC Men's T20 World Cup. There were some notable exclusions including that of leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. Chahal was seen arriving in Dubai for the second half of the Indian Premier League, Royal Challengers Bangalore uploaded an image of the leg-spinner wearing a Team India mask.

Team India's squad for T20 World Cup

The possible reason for Chahal's exclusion from the squad could be his recent form, since the start of 2020, he has played 13 games and taken 11 wickets at 41.36 and an economy rate of 8.92. The ICC Men's T20 World Cup is slated to take place from October 17 with Team India starting its campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on October 24. Here is the much-awaited Indian squad for T20 World Cup. Former Indian skipper MS Dhoni will mentor the side, as per BCCI Secretary Jay Shah. 

India's squad for T20 World Cup: Virat Kohli (Capt), Rohit Sharma (VC), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami.

Standby Players- Shreyas Iyer, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar.

IPL 2021 Phase 2

The Indian Premier League (IPL) was stopped mid-way in May after the second wave of the COVID pandemic hit India. Several players and staff members belonging to Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings, Delhi Capitals, and Sunrisers Hyderabad had returned positive COVID tests, which prompted the BCCI to postpone the remainder of the tournament. With just 30 matches played in the 14th edition of the tournament, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that the second leg of the IPL would commence from September 19 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The second leg will start with the match against Chennai Super Kings and defending champions Mumbai Indians.

RCB Announce new head coach

The franchise also announced Mike Hesson as its new head coach, confirming Simon Katich's unavailability for the second leg in UAE. Hesson was previously serving as the Director of Cricket Operations at RCB. The Virat Kohli-led side is ranked third on the points table, courtesy of five wins in seven matches earlier in the tournament. The RCB will play its first match against Kolkata Knight Riders once the season resumes in the UAE. 

(Image: @royalchallengersbangalore - Instagram)