All eyes on young guns as India switch to T20 mode against England

It is the beginning of a new era for India in T20 cricket as a host of young players line up as Men in Blue take on England in three T20 International matches, the first of which will be played at Green Park here today

Yuvraj Singh (centre) leads MSâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Dhoni, Hardik Pandya (looking down), Manish Pandey, Virat Kohli, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Rishabh Pant during a training session at Green Park, Kanpur yesterday. This is their first T20 series since August’s two-match contest vs WI in USA  Pic/PTI

Kanpur: It is the beginning of a new era for India in T20 cricket as a host of young players line up as Men in Blue take on England in three T20 International matches, the first of which will be played at Green Park here today.

Exciting prospects like Rishabh Pant, Mandeep Singh, Manish Pandey, Lokesh Rahul, all-rounder Hardik Pandya, leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and off-spinner Parvez Rasool are the ones who have been earmarked to take Indian cricket forward. Not all will get a chance immediately, but they are on the radar of the think-tank as the future of Indian cricket.

The most exciting prospect is Delhi southpaw Pant. who has made tons of runs in the Ranji Trophy and at an impressive strike-rate which has forced the selectors to include him in the T20 squad. It needs to be seen if he will be thrown at the deep end immediately, or the team management will play the waiting game.

India skipper Virat Kohli has wholeheartedly backed the plan to groom youngsters. Speaking on the eve of the match, Kohli said: "Young talent needs to be groomed into international cricket. From T20s to ODIs and then Tests, it has to be a gradual progress, giving them ample confidence on the way. We need to help them to blend in and take Indian cricket forward."

Kohli was, however, not forthcoming on which youngsters would get a chance in the first game, but gave an indication of following a set batting line-up in the opening game and thinking about experimenting later in the series.

"The line-up in the first game is not an issue. We will follow the set batting line-up. Only when we have the problem of consistency we will make changes," the skipper said.

Will KL Rahul open?
There is a slot open for an opener to accompany Lokesh Rahul. Will it be Mandeep or Pant?

Or will Kohli take the bull by the horn and tame the England attack, which is spearheaded by fiesty T20 specialist Tymal Mills. An English correspondent asked Kohli if the Indian team was worried about facing Mills, who bowls at 90mph. Kohli just laughed off the question, saying, "I haven't seen much of him, but I have played 90mph before. We have faced enough 90mph bowlers, it's not an issue".

With frontline spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja rested for the T20s, it is a good opportunity for Rasool and Chahal to make the most of the opportunity.

Raina's big game
Of course, the game is also important for experienced player like Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh and veteran left-arm seamer Ashish Nehra. How well they perform will go a long way in deciding their future. It's especially true for Raina, of whom Kohli said: "He has still a lot to offer to Indian cricket, especially in the shortest form. He needs to make the most of the opportunity and start the series from scratch. We have faith in him - that he can continue to contribute to the team's cause."

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