India all-rounder Rahul Tewatia was rewarded with a maiden call-up by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the upcoming five-match T20I series against England on Saturday.
Tewatia, who plays for Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020, was among three uncapped Indian players who were picked in the T20I squad for the first time. Apart from Tewatia, Mumbai Indians (MI) players Surya Kumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan have been included in the outfit.
Moreover, mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy has also been named in the squad. Interestingly, Varun is still an uncapped player. He received his maiden call up ahead of the Australia tour but was eventually ruled out due to an injury.
Coming back to Tewatia, he became the overnight sensation in world cricket after playing a breath-taking inning against Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) in IPL 2020 on September 27. Tewatia had smashed 53 off 31 balls to complete a record 224-run chase for Royals in Sharjah successfully. The 27-year-old hit seven sixes in that match-winning innings, including five maximums in the 17th over bowled by Sheldon Cottrell.
Former England cricketer Graeme Swann, who was a part of the commentary panel in the cash-rich league last year, has congratulated Tewatia by saying that ‘the world needs superheroes right now.’
“Huge congratulations to @rahultewatia02 for getting the nod for India. I hope he plays against @englandcricket in the T20’s. The world needs superheroes right now,” tweeted Swann.
Huge congratulations to @rahultewatia02 for getting the nod for India. I hope he plays against @englandcricket in the T20’s. The world needs superheroes right now 😁
— Graeme Swann (@Swannyg66) February 20, 2021
After getting a place in the Indian team, Tewatia, who scored 255 runs and took 10 wickets in IPL 2020, said he could not wait to share the dressing room with Indian captain Virat Kohli.
“So far, I played against Virat Kohli in the IPL. Now I will play with him and share the dressing room with him. I cannot wait to share the dressing room with him and some of the best cricketers in world cricket. It will be all about learning from them and understanding how they compete against the best in the business and succeed,” said Tewatia as quoted by Times Now.
