Former India cricketer Parthiv Patel suggested the inclusion of Sanju Samson in India's playing XI, and also a change in his role.

Parthiv Patel said on Tuesday that he would like to see vice-captain Axar Patel come back to the playing eleven for the all-important T20 World Cup clash against Zimbabwe.

Fans around the world are eagerly waiting for the start of the biggest cricket carnival - the Indian Premier League (IPL).

While the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, and Kapil Dev made the cut, the exclusions of former India captains MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma were major talking points.

Parthiv Patel highlights Jasprit Bumrah's key role and Hardik Pandya's return as India prepares for the five-match T20I series against South Africa starting December 9.

Former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel said his eyes will be fixed on how the side manages Jasprit Bumrah's quota of overs in the upcoming T20I series against South Africa.

Former India cricketer Parthiv Patel went against Gautam Gambhir's usual strategy and made a couple of bold calls while picking his predicted XI for the first ODI against South Africa.

India lost to Australia by 125 runs in the summit clash of the 2003 ODI World Cup.

Widely regarded as one of the most destructive batters in the shortest format, Suryakumar has faced a challenging period as evidenced by him scoring only 72 runs during India's victorious Asia Cup campaign in the UAE.

Kuldeep Yadav, who did not play two out of the three ODIs against Australia, also did not feature in the India playing XI for the first T20I chosen by former cricketer Parthiv Patel.