England will tour India for five T20Is and three ODIs ahead of the Champions Trophy.
The BCCI has reportedly asked KL Rahul to feature in the three-match ODI series against England at home next month, after initially deciding to rest him till the Champions Trophy 2025, slated to be held in Pakistan and UAE from February 19 to March 9.
The England series, starting February 6 in Nagpur, will be an ideal preparatory ground for the Indian team before the ICC showpiece.
"The selectors initially decided to rest Rahul, who plays in the middle order and is a wicketkeeper in the ODIs, from the entire white-ball series against England at home. However, they had a rethink and the BCCI has now asked him to play in the ODI series so that he gains some match practice ahead of the Champions Trophy in February," TOI quoted a source as saying.
India will also host England in five T20Is prior to the 50-over series. While Rahul hasn't been a part of the T20I setup lately, he has been India's first-choice wicketkeeper-batter in ODI format where he has consistently scored runs in the middle-order.
Meanwhile, young tearaway Mayank Yadav is likely to miss the upcoming limited-overs series against England due to an injury.
Mayank rose to fame with his impressive exploits in the IPL 2024 season for Lucknow Super Giants. He was drafted into the Indian squad for the first time during the T20I series against Bangladesh in October last year.
However, the 22-year-old encountered a back injury in his debut series, which ruled him out of the T20I tour of South Africa in November 2024. He has not returned to action since.
"He's suffering from a back injury and is unlikely to be fit for the England series. He hasn't even been named amongst the probables for Delhi's first Ranji match of the second leg against Saurashtra from January 23," TOI quoted a BCCI source as saying.
India's squad for the T20I series against England is expected to be announced over this weekend. The selectors are likely to retain the squad that featured in the away series against South Africa with a few tweaks here and there.
The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee may pick the squad for India's three-match ODI series and the Champions Trophy after around January 19.
(With TOI Inputs)