India's T20 World Cup Opener Hit by Bumrah Illness, USA Elect to Field

India suffered a setback before the toss, as pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah had to sit out because he was unwell. The defending champions also decided not to include wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson and spin bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar. Tilak Varma and Ishan Kishan come in their place.

Mohammed Siraj was added to the playing XI, who was recently drafted into the 15-player squad after Harshit Rana was ruled out due to a knee injury during the warm-up match against South Africa in Navi Mumbai on February 4. Mohammed Siraj last played a T20I for India in July 2024 against Sri Lanka in Pallekele.

India also missed out on Sanju Samson and picked in-form Ishan Kishan as the first-choice wicket-keeper batter in the tournament opener.

USA skipper Monank Patel said the surface looks good, and they opted to field first because knowing the target will be helpful. "The World Cup is one of the biggest stages, and we want to do our best. It's a dream come true for a lot of players, having started their careers in India," he said. Everyone is confident and looking forward to it.

India captain Suryakumar Yadav said they were looking to bat first anyway. He did not think there will be a lot of dew later. "There will, of course, be pressure," he says but wants the team to play the same way they have played in recent matches.

Playing XIs:

India: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Varun Chakravarthy

USA: Saiteja Mukkamalla, Andries Gous (wk), Monank Patel (capt), Milind Kumar, Sanjay Krishnamurthi, Harmeet Singh, Shubham Ranjane, Mohammad Mohsin, Shadley van Schalkwyk, Saurabh Netravalkar, Ali Khan.

- IANS