IND vs SL 2023: Wasim Jaffer predicts India's XI for first T20I

India and Sri Lanka will lock horns in the first of the three T20Is on Tuesday, January 3, at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The Asian Champions will be facing India in a three-match ODI series after the 20-over games. Ahead of the first T20I, former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer predicted India's playing combination for the opening game but left out the youngsters who have earned their maiden callup.

While many of the senior players have been rested for the T20Is, Hardik Pandya will be leading a group of young faces. The last time India and Sri Lanka faced each other was during the Asia Cup 2022. India lost the game to Sri Lanka in the Super Four stage of the tournament and the loss eventually led to the Men in Blue being knocked out of the race to the finals.

Taking to Twitter, Jaffer shared his ideal Playing XI for India for the upcoming contest. He named Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan as the opening batters, with vice-captain Suryakumar Yadav completing the top order. While Kishan has the experience of playing T20 internationals, Jaffer believes that Gill will finally receive the long-awaited T20I cap based on his recent outings.

Jaffer included Sanju Samson in the team, as a middle-order batter, but named Kishan as the wicketkeeper-batter for the game. With Samson at No. 4, Jaffer believes skipper Pandya will come out to play at No. 5. While Pandya will be the pace-bowling all-rounder, Jaffer named three spin-bowling all-rounders in the team as he included Axar Patel, Deepak Hooda, and Washington Sundar.

Harshal Patel, who has been out of the Indian setup for the past few months, makes it to Jaffer’s playing combination, as he left out Umran Malik, Shivam Mavi, and Mukesh Kumar. The lineup is completed by senior spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and the young pace-bowling sensation Arshdeep Singh.

Wasim Jaffer’s Predicted India XI for the first T20I:

Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav (vc), Sanju Samson, Hardik Pandya (c), Axar Patel, Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh

My playing XI for tomorrow:

1. Gill
2. Ishan (wk)
3. SKY
4. Sanju
5. Hardik (c)
6. Hooda
7. Axar
8. Sundar
9. Harshal
10. Chahal
11. Arshdeep

What's yours? #INDvSL

— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) January 2, 2023