India predicted playing XI vs Japan: Will Vaibhav Sooryavanshi start in the historic T20I match? originally appeared on Cricket News.
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KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- India face Japan in a historic first-ever T20I meeting at the Sano International Cricket Ground on September 22.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi could finally get his chance after being benched throughout the Afghanistan series.
- Aakash Chopra has urged the team management to rest Abhishek Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah for the fixture.
Will Vaibhav Sooryavanshi return to India’s playing XI vs Japan?
India begin their tour of Japan with a genuinely historic occasion on Tuesday, the first-ever men’s international meeting between the two nations, and the biggest talking point heading into it has nothing to do with the opposition.
Shreyas Iyer’s side arrive fresh off a 3-0 sweep of Afghanistan, but Vaibhav Sooryavanshi did not feature in a single match of that series, watching from the bench as Sanju Samson made the most of his own opportunity with 117 runs at a strike rate above 180.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir had already indicated Sooryavanshi’s chance would come in due course, and with the fixture against Japan carrying far less pressure than a bilateral series against a Full Member nation, this looks like exactly the moment to hand him that opportunity.
Former India batter Aakash Chopra has made his own view clear, calling for two changes to accommodate the teenager rather than leaving him out again.
“You can rest Abhishek Sharma, and he can play in the Asian Games. We can add Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to the playing XI, and he can open with Sanju Samson. I am expecting to see this one change. This should be done,” Chopra said, also suggesting Jasprit Bumrah could be rested given India do not need to field their strongest possible attack against Japan.
MORE:‘Future for India’: Sooryavanshi gets high praise from Sri Lanka legend Jayasuriya
India’s probable XI for the one-off T20I vs Japan
Reports remain split on exactly how India will line up, with some predictions keeping faith with Samson after his strong Afghanistan series and others backing Sooryavanshi to return to the lineup.
Varun Chakravarthy remains unavailable due to a side strain, with Vipraj Nigam added to the squad as cover, though India are expected to lean on more experienced spin options for this particular match.
- Abhishek Sharma
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi/Sanju Samson
- Ishan Kishan (WK)
- Shreyas Iyer (C)
- Tilak Varma
- Shivam Dube
- Washington Sundar
- Axar Patel
- Ravi Bishnoi
- Jasprit Bumrah
- Arshdeep Singh
MORE: How to watch India vs Japan one-off T20I live?
Japan predicted XI for the historic clash
Japan will field the same squad selected for their Asian Games campaign, giving the hosts continuity between the two assignments.
MORE: India vs Japan: All you need to know about the Japan cricket team
Captain Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming leads a side that will lean on Wataru Miyauchi’s aggressive strokeplay and Makoto Taniyama’s leg-spin to make the most of a rare opportunity against the world’s top-ranked T20I side.
- Wataru Miyauchi (WK)
- Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake
- Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming (C)
- Benjamin Ito
- Ibrahim Takahashi
- Declan Suzuki-McComb
- Jake Kusuda-Nairn
- Makoto Taniyama
- Charlie Hara-Hinze
- Tsuyoshi Takada
- Ryota Kobayashi
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