Follow UsFast bowler Deepak Chahar has been added to India's squad for the remainder of the T20 International (T20I) series against Australia, the BCCI has confirmed. The inclusion comes after Mukesh Kumar has been granted leave for his wedding, but will re-join the squad ahead of the fourth T20I in Raipur on Friday (December 1). The pacer from Bengal managed to pick up just one wicket in the two matches so far.
"Fast bowler Mukesh Kumar made a request to BCCI to be released from India’s squad ahead of the third T20I against Australia in Guwahati. Mukesh is getting married and has been granted leave for the duration of his wedding festivities," BCCI said in a statement.
"He will join the squad ahead of the 4th T20I in Raipur. Pacer Deepak Chahar has been added to India’s squad for the remainder of the series."
Chahar last played for India in an ODI against Bangladesh in December last year. His career has since been hampered by injuries, including a hamstring injury that kept him out of most of this year's Indian Premier League (IPL).
Chahar showed excellent form in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy this year, finishing as Rajasthan's leading wicket-taker with 10 wickets at 13.90 in five matches. In the last match against Gujarat, he also registered his best List-A figures of 6 for 41 in Chandigarh.
India have taken a comfortable 2-0 lead in the five-match T20I series, following a two-wicket win in Visakhapatnam followed by a 44-run victory in the second game in Thiruvananthapuram. With the majority of the first-choice players missing out after the World Cup, the series gives an opportunity for a few fringe players to stake a claim, given that the T20 World Cup is less than seven months away.
India will play eight more T20Is after the third T20I in Guwahati ahead of the mega event set to be played in the US and Caribbean in June 2024.