Both the Indian cricket team and their fans would be waiting with bated breath in order to put behind saddening memories of an ODI series loss in Bangladesh last month. An imminent three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka at home gives India a fitting opportunity of regaining form in this format.
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In what is their second assignment in 2023, India will be playing an ODI for the first time in an ICC Cricket World Cup year today. Henceforth, Rohit Sharma and his men wouldn’t want to put any foot wrong to be at their optimum best by the time the world event is to be played in the second half of the year.
A 16-member Indian squad means that five players will have to warm the bench in the first ODI at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium. As a result, the team management has no option than to undergo selection conundrum for picking the Best Indian XI is no mean task.
Will Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav not playing today’s first ODI against Sri Lanka?
With Sharma confirming that Shubman Gill will partner him at the top of the order in place of Ishan Kishan and in the absence of Shikhar Dhawan, a major selection conundrum has been already solved.
In Kishan’s place, KL Rahul will be seen playing as a middle-order wicket-keeper batter. As a result, Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav are fighting for one middle-order spot. Considering how Iyer is India’s highest ODI run-scorer in the last 12 months, he is quite likely to make the cut.
The prospect of Kishan and Yadav missing out on ODI spots is making former India batter Mohammad Kaif “slightly uncomfortable” bearing in mind how they scored an ODI double century and a T20I century respectively recently. Kaif, who has a point to make, hoped for Kishan and Yadav to remain motivated in spite of a snub coming their way later in the day.
Both Mumbai Indians batters, it is noteworthy that Kishan and Yadav had made their T20I and ODI debuts in the same match against England and Sri Lanka respectively in 2021. Although it is unfortunate for batters of their quality to not find a place in the Playing XI, it is what it is with respect to cut-throat competition in the Indian Playing XI.
