MSK Prasad-led Indian selection panel have shown their interest for the youngsters for the T20 cricket as they have named a new-look Twenty20 (T20) squad for the series against Sri Lanka.
The national selectors decided to give a chance to youngsters, including Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar and Basil Thampi on the basis of their performance in the domestic circuit for the Lanka series.
The 22-year-old all-rounder Deepak Hooda, who plays for India ‘A’ team, said that the national call is like a dream come true for him and he is excited to wear a national jersey to which he dreamt from early ages.
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Deepak further added that his India A performance has been awarded him national call for the T20 International series against Sri Lanka, starting with the first T20I at Cuttack on 20 December.
Exclusively speaking to Indian Express, Hooda said, “The excitement level is very high as getting a chance to represent the country is nothing less than a dream come true for me and my family. Wearing the Indian jersey is something I have been waiting for. I believe, it was my performance for India A which has been awarded now.”
Deepak, who usually bats down the order, is open to batting at any position and also looking forward to contributing with the ball.
He added, “Right now, I don’t have any expectations for batting at a certain position. Instead of contributing to team’s success will be my priority.”
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Although, the youngster already shared the dressing room with some international players during the Indian Premier League (IPL), where he has played for the SunRisers Hyderabad, said he is excited to share the Indian dressing room with seniors like MS Dhoni to improve his game.
He concluded by saying, “IPL’s experience will come handy and whatever I can learn from seniors here will be a bonus for me. To succeed at this level, I am looking to get vital inputs from seniors and coaches.”
Indian Squad:
Rohit Sharma(C), KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Y Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Basil Thampi, Jaydev Unadkat
