IND vs SA: Why are Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah not included in playing XI for the third T20I in Dharamsala

Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah missed out on India’s third T20I against South Africa in Dharamsala.

The third T20I between Indian Cricket Team and South Africa Cricket Team is currently underway at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala. While the hosts opted for the same playing XI in the first two encounters, they made two changes to their playing for the third game.

At the toss, Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav informed that all-rounder Axar Patel and pacer Jasprit Bumrah gave not been included for the encounter. In their absence, Harshit Rana and Kuldeep Yadav were included in the playing XI.

Suryakumar also won the toss and opted to bowl first in the match, where India will aim for a comeback. The five-match T20I series is currently tied 1-1 after two games. While the Men in Blue clinched a fabulous victory by 101 runs in the opening game, the Proteas bounced back with a 51-run win in the second clash.

Revealed: Why are Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah not included in playing XI for the third T20I

At the toss, Yadav also revealed why Patel and Bumrah were not part of the clash. While Patel missed out due to being unwell, Bumrah is not part of the encounter due to personal reasons.

“We’ve made two forced changes. Axar Patel misses out as he’s unwell, and Jasprit Bumrah misses out due to personal reasons back home. Harshit Rana comes in, and Kuldeep Yadav comes in,” he said.

Moreover, the Board of Control for India (BCCI) also informed on X (formerly Twitter) that Bumrah has returned home for personal reasons, while Axar is ill. It is also unclear whether Bumrah will be available for remainder of the series.

“Axar Patel is unavailable for the third T20I due to illness. Jasprit Bumrah has gone back home for personal reasons and will be unavailable for the game. An update on him joining the squad for the remaining matches will be provided in due course,” BCCI tweeted.

Speaking about the decision to bowl first, Yadav said, “We’re going to bowl first. It’s been a good wicket all weekend and I don’t think it’ll change much, but there is a little bit of dew already and we feel it might get heavier later on. So, we’re happy to bowl first. It’s a wonderful place, wonderful people, and a fantastic ground. Hopefully when we bat and bowl, we can give everyone some good entertainment”.

India’s Playing XI for third T20I: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma(w), Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy.

South Africa’s Playing XI for third T20I: Reeza Hendricks, Quinton de Kock(w), Aiden Markram (c), Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Ottneil Baartman.

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