Shivam Dube replaces Nittish Reddy in India squad for Zim tour

THE Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has announced that Shivam Dube will replace uncapped Nittish Kumar Reddy who picked up an injury for their tour of Zimbabwe which gets underway on Saturday at Harare Sports Club.

Reddy was one of the four uncapped players who were announced in India’s 15-man initial squad at the beginning of this past week, however, the 21-year-old will have to wait a bit longer for his debut with the more experienced Dube coming in.

“The Men’s Selection Committee named Shivam Dube as replacement for the injured Nitish Reddy in India’s squad for the upcoming tour of Zimbabwe. The BCCI Medical Team is monitoring Nitish Reddy’s progress,” read a statement from BCCI Secretary, Jay Shah.

India is set to make the trip to Zimbabwe for a five-match T20I series starting on July 6 in Harare. The team will be led by 24-year-old batter, Shubman Gill in Rohit Sharma’s absence. Gill will be India’s 14th captain in T20Is.

With Reddy missing out due to injury, the other uncapped players who made the team for the tour are Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag and Tushar Deshpande while Dhruv Jurel — who made his debut against England in March — was also picked as the second wicket keeper, back up to Sanju Samson.

Dube has now become only the third player from India’s team that competed at the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies that will be playing against Zimbabwe. The other two players that made the squad from the global showpiece are Yashasvi Jaiswal and Samson. The rest of the players were given time to rest after a gruelling campaign at the World Cup.

Their skipper, Gill, alongside Rinku Singh, Avesh Khan and Khaleel Ahmed were in India’s reserves for the global showpiece.

The Indian team is expected to be in Zimbabwe tomorrow and will be coached by VVS Laxman in the interim, with Rahul Dravid’s tenure ending with the T20 World Cup. The BCCI is yet to appoint Dravid’s permanent replacement.

The series against India will mark a new chapter for Zimbabwe as they will be under a new technical setup. South African Justin Sammons was appointed head coach last week, with former Zimbabwe international Dion Ebrahim as his assistant. They have been tasked with securing qualification for the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup which will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. The Chevrons missed out on qualifying for the ongoing T20 World Cup in the

West Indies and United States of America after a dismal showing in the regional qualifiers.
Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) is yet to announce their squad.
Zimbabwe and India have faced each other eight times in 20-over cricket with India winning six of those while the

Chevrons have only emerged victorious on a couple of occasions.
The five matches between Zimbabwe and India are pencilled for 6, 7, 10, 13 and 14 July. All the five matches will be starting at 1pm.

India’s updated squad for
T20I series in Zimbabwe

Shubman Gill (Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Abhishek Sharma, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Riyan Parag, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, Tushar Deshpande, Shivam Dube. –@brandon_malvin.