Yuvraj dropped, Ashwin, Shami rested for SL ODIs and T20I

Mumbai, Aug 13 - Veteran batsman Yuvraj Singh was on Sunday excluded from the Indian squad that will face Sri Lanka in a five-match One-Day International (ODI) series and a lone Twenty20 International.

Yuvraj was below-par in the last couple of tournaments, scoring 105 runs in the ICC Champions Trophy and 57 runs during the West Indies tour. Also, experienced spin-twins Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have been rested for the limited overs matches, beginning from August 20. Experienced fast bowlers Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami have been rested, probably keeping in mind the option of an extra spinner in the spin-friendly Sri Lankan conditions.

Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal are captain Virat Kohli's options among slow bowlers. Mumbai paceman Shardul Thakur made a comeback into the squad alongwith Karnataka batsman Manish Pandey.

Mumbai batsman Rohit Sharma has been surprisingly named the vice-captain, while opening batsman Lokesh Rahul returned after an injury lay-off. The Karnataka right-hander has been in good form in the ongoing three-match Test series against the Islanders.

Young Delhi wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant had to make way for Rahul.

The squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma (vice captain), Lokesh Rahul, Manish Pandey, Ajinkya Rahane, Kedar Jadhav, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur.

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IANS