Former India coach Abhishek Nayar has named his Indian playing XI for the first T20I against the West Indies. He picked Naman Dhir ahead of Kuldeep Yadav as a spin-bowling option. India will take on the West Indies in the first T20I of the five-match series in Lucknow on Tuesday, October 6. Naman and Kuldeep were not part of the Indian team in the recently concluded Asian Games 2026 but have been included for the T20Is against the Windies as well.
On the Star Sports show ‘Follow the Blues,’ Nayar said, “Because I have been in that support staff, I am trying to think that way. That’s my thinking and probably theirs as well. The fact that Naman Dhir has been brought in place of Washington Sundar, and the West Indies have a lot of left-handers, you would want a Naman Dhir to bowl in the middle overs.”
“Why Naman Dhir ahead of Kuldeep Yadav for me is because I feel Naman Dhir can add value with the bat. You know Gautam Gambhir is someone who loves all-rounders. Naman Dhir is someone who can give you something with the bat, and he bowled well in this series (ODIs against the West Indies),” Nayar shared again.
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However, Abhishek Nayar added that the T20I series against the West Indies presents India with an opportunity to test their all-rounders.
“Sanju Samson should play. Abhishek Sharma – without a doubt. So the batting is secure. You have an opportunity now to sort of look at who your all-rounders are. If Washi gets injured, who comes in? If Nitish Kumar Reddy gets injured, who comes in? If Shivam Dube gets injured, who comes in? So this is where you see three fast bowlers, two spinners, but your fifth and sixth are both all-rounders,” he said.
“So you have got a Naman Dhir in, you have got a Shivam Dube in, and then you sort of see whether you can play that combination in good batting conditions and still manage to defend a score without a Bumrah, and if you can, which means you are looking in foresight in two years when you play the next World Cup, you have got a team ready,” he concluded.
Abhishek Nayar’s India playing 11 for IND vs WI 2026 1st T20I:
Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Naman Dhir, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav
