IND vs. SL 2021: List of Indian team's debutants in 2nd T20I

The COVID-19 pandemic has made its presence felt in the Indian team, with as many as eight players missing out on the second T20I against Sri Lanka on Wednesday.

However, the unfortunate turn of events has also allowed Shikhar Dhawan and Co. to field four young debutants in the game.

Opening batters Devdutt Padikkal and Ruturaj Gaikwad, who have made their names in the past two years in the IPL, are the first two debutants. Joining them are Kolkata Knight Riders left-handed batter Nitish Rana and emerging left-arm pacer Chetan Sakariya.

Both Padikkal and Gaikwad were among the top scorers for their franchises, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings, respectively, in the first half of IPL 2021.

While the former scored 195 runs from six innings, including a magnificent 101*, the latter collected 196 runs from seven innings.

Being among the youngest in the 20-man squad, both missed out on opportunities in the India-Sri Lanka ODI series and will be raring to show their mettle in the upcoming two games.

Ruturaj is expected to open alongside skipper Shikhar Dhawan to maintain the right-left combination. Padikkal will most likely take the number three spot.

🚨 NEWS 🚨: Additions to #TeamIndia squad in Sri Lanka for last two T20Is. #SLvINDMore Details 👇

— BCCI (@BCCI) July 28, 2021

Rana did play the final ODI but was unlikely to come into contention in this leg until now. He, too, has arrived in the island nation with substantial IPL runs in the bag.

From seven innings in the 2021 season, the 27-year-old had put up 201 runs at an average of 28.71 while striking at 122.56. The southpaw will most likely feature in the now-depleted middle order.

Meanwhile, Sakariya was mighty impressive on his India debut in the third ODI. The witty pacer picked up two wickets from his eight overs in the match, keeping the visitors in the game despite their below-par target.

India's playing XI for the 2nd T20I

Hello & Good Evening from Colombo 👋Sri Lanka have elected to bowl against #TeamIndia in the 2⃣nd #SLvIND T20I. Follow the match 👉 https://t.co/Hsbf9yWCChHere's India's Playing XI 👇 pic.twitter.com/yqyeobUxuu

— BCCI (@BCCI) July 28, 2021

Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bowl first. India is clearly short of their usual strength, thereby giving the youngsters a brilliant opportunity to showcase their talent when it's needed the most.

India Playing XI: Shikhar Dhawan(c), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson(w), Nitish Rana, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Rahul Chahar, Navdeep Saini, Chetan Sakariya, Varun Chakravarthy