Young Indian stars will be eager to usher in a new era in the shortest format with a series victory when they face Zimbabwe in the fourth T20I in Harare on Saturday.
After an unexpected defeat in the first match, the Shubman Gill-led side rediscovered its mojo in the second and third games to take a 2-1 lead with comprehensive wins.
Under the existing cricketing landscape, a series win over Zimbabwe will not rank high in the pecking order, but it will certainly spark ambitions inside some young players who are keen to take the team forward post the retirement of some modern-day greats.
None provide more compelling cases of that scenario than Washington Sundar and Abhishek Sharma.Post the retirement of Ravindra Jadeja from T20Is, Washington is eyeing the spin-all-rounder slot and the Tamil Nadu man has shown some promising signs against Zimbabwe, taking six wickets at a fine economy of 4.5.
The 24-year-old has given this Indian side the option of a bowler flexible enough to operate inside and outside the Power Play, and a handy lower-order batter, who if the need arises, has the technique to come up the order as well.
Abhishek bludgeoned a 47-ball hundred in the second T20I here, underscoring the hope around him as a long-term India material.Abhishek will hope to further buttress his claim for the other vacant top-order spot, for which there are other strong contenders in Shubman Gill and Ruturaj Gaikwad, with a bruising knock against the African side here on the morrow.
But this is not to say that some of the more established names such as Sanju Samson and Shivam Dube have nothing to gain from this series.
They linked with the squad here after taking part in India's victory parade in Mumbai post the T20 World Cup triumph, where they had limited or little role in that epochal run.
So, the remaining two matches of this series will be an opportunity for Dube and Samson to keep themselves in the front row of players who will carry India into the future, producing some valuable efforts.
Indian management will also be pleased by the outing of their bowlers, particularly that of leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, whose googlies were indecipherable for the home batters.Â
