If Virat returns to playing 11 in the 2nd ODI versus England, whose place will he take in the team?
The Indian Cricket Team, under the leadership of Rohit Sharma, started off the three-match ODI series versus England on a strong note as they secured a comfortable victory by a margin of four wickets in Nagpur. Newly appointed vice-captain Shubman Gill was the man-of-the-match, playing a brilliant inning of 87 runs.
While the Men in Blue had a good match in all departments, star batter Virat Kohli was not seen in action in the contest, because during the toss, skipper Rohit Sharma revealed that he had a swollen knee, therefore he will not be taking part in the first ODI.
But, the possibility of him playing in the 2nd ODI are very high. According to the news reports of the Indian media, the 36-year-old is set to be available for selection in the second match. In such a situation, if Virat returns to the playing 11, then a dangerous and a explosive batter may have to be dropped from the starting 11 in order to accommodate Kohli in the 11.
Virat is set to return in the second match of the series
A report of the Times of India stated that Kohli's injury is not a serious and he will be ready to feature in the second encounter of the series. The Rohit Sharma-led outfit will be travelling to Cuttak as the 2nd match is slated to be played at the Barabaati Stadium on the 9th of February (Sunday).
A insider of the Indian team said, 'His right knee was fine during practice, but when we returned to the hotel, it swelled up. However, it does not seem so serious. There is every possibility that he will play the Cuttack ODI.'
The Indian Team Management will be forced to drop this player if Virat returns
Obviously, if Virat Kohli plays in the second match, one of the batsmen may have to sit out. In such a situation, the management can put Yashasvi Jaiswal on the bench. Let us tell you that the first match in Nagpur was Yashasvi's debut match in the 50 over format.
However, he could not do anything special and got out off the bowling of Jofra Archer after scoring just 15 runs. Since Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer showed excellent performance with the bat in the opening contest, there is no chance of them being dropped.Rohit Sharma's bat may not have worked, but he is the captain, so there is no question of him sitting out.
The tried and trusted opening pair of Gill and Rohit will return
If Yashasvi Jaiswal is dropped to the bench in the 2nd ODI, then the tried & trusted opening pair of captain Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill will be seen opening the innings for the Men in Blue. Both of them have played together as opening batters in the past and this opening pair is considered as a very reliable and trusted one.
This ODI series versus England is the final bilateral event for the Rohit Sharma-led outfit before the commencement of the Champions Trophy 2025. In such a situation, the team management wants to try as many combos as possible before coming to a conclusive decision in the mega ICC event of this year.
Team India's strongest playing 11 for the 2nd ODI versus England with Virat Kohli
Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Virat Kohli, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammad Shami & Harshit Rana.