Kohli named India captain

India

Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been rested for India’s opening three ODIs against Sri Lanka next month.

Batsman Virat Kohli has been named as the stand-in skipper. Spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha have been recalled.

Batsman Rohit Sharma, who is nursing a finger injury, was excluded – and spinner Akshar Patel retained.

The talented Kohli sporadically captained the country on a part-time basis in a dozen ODIs between July 2013 and March 2014, against the Sri Lankans, West Indies, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Cuttack, Hyderabad, Ranchi, Kolkata and Ahmedabad will host ODIs one, two, three, four and five respectively. The series opener will be played on 2 November, with the other four dates still to be confirmed.

Squad: Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Wriddhiman Saha (wicketkeeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Amit Mishra, Vijay, Varun Aaron, Akshar Patel.

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