IND vs SL: India, the recently crowned World Champions in the shorter format of the game, is looking forward to their next campaign in the upcoming year’s Champions Trophy. Though the BCCI has not given an official confirmation about the team’s participation in the tournament to be held in Pakistan, Jay Shah’s statements have often sparked indications towards the Men in Blue eyeing the Champions Trophy.
With the likes of the greats retaining their positions for the Champions Trophy, India will be playing six ODI matches before the Champions Trophy, with the recent matches being played in India’s tour of Sri Lanka from the 2nd to the 7th of August.
This will be India’s first series under newly appointed coach Gautam Gambhir, and probably India will be led by KL Rahul, as it has been speculated that Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah will be rested for the series.
The series against the sub-continent neighbours might be seen as a resort for Gambhir and co. to solve some issues that India faced with their squad in the 2023 World Cup.
The biggest among them is the other opening partner, Rohit Sharma. The Indian skipper is enjoying the best phases of his career in his final days, while Sharma was excellent at the top for the Men in Blue. Shubman Gill, who was given his World Cup debut in 2023, failed miserably and underperformed in the entire tournament.
He was probably India’s weakest limb, and with the likes of several new stars like Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad in contention for the spot, India and new coach Gambhir will have to rethink about this position.
India will also have the likes of Rishabh Pant alongside the probable return of Shreyas Iyer after the appointment of ex-KKR mentor Gautam Gambhir. Iyer faced a disappointing loss of his BCCI contract despite his irresistible form in the 2023 World Cup. However, if Iyer plays at No. 4 and Wicket-keeper batter KL Rahul retains his spot at No. 5, there will be immense queries about featuring Rishabh Pant in the starting XI for the Champions Trophy.
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Let’s take a look at India’s probable choices for the Sri Lanka tour.
Batters
India are all set to rest Rohit and Virat, while they will have a new bunch of quality cricketers alongside Shreyas Iyer, who might be making a return to the side. Also, Suryakumar Yadav, who played stunningly in the T20 World Cup, would lose his ODI spot due to his unconvincing performance in the format.
Jaiswal, Gill, and even Ruturaj Gaikwad might be seen in blue jerseys for the series against Sri Lanka.
All-Rounders
This is probably the only place where there seems to be no query, as India has the likes of Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, and Axar Patel, all three being India’s first and only preference for the ODI format.
Pandya, after being knocked off with an injury from the ODI World Cup, will mark his return to the format while Jadeja and Patel retain their spots against Sri Lanka.
Wicket-keepers
KL Rahul is India’s first choice, as in the absence of an injured Rishabh Pant, the LSG batter took command of the middle order and scored, averaging over 75 in the position. Also, Rahul will probably be seen as India’s skipper in the ODI series.
Rishabh Pant, who was offered a contract by the BCCI despite his months of injury, was seen in the India squad for the T20 World Cup with immediate effect. Will India feature him in the ODIs as well? This remains a mystery about what Gambhir thinks about the superstar’s future.
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Bowlers
Maybe not in the series, but Jasprit Bumrah remains India’s first-hand choice in the pace bowling department. But who else? Shami has not shown much of a recovery sign, and Siraj has not been convincing with the ball since the World Cups.
Arshdeep was India’s leading wicket-taker in the T20 World Cup, and he seems to be evolving as an exceptionally talented cricketer. But is the left-armer ready to play the longer format of limited-overs cricket?
Other than him, Avesh Khan and Khaleel Ahmed will stand to be experienced campaigners in the domestic games. They will be looking at both the Sri Lanka series and later a home series against England to earn their spots in India’s pace department, which lacks commandment.
India’s probable 15-man squad for the Sri Lanka tour (ODI): Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Md. Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson, and Khaleel Ahmed.