India vs Australia 2019: India’s Likely 15-Man Squad for the First Three ODIs
Feb 13, 2019 at 4:41 PM
The Indian selection committee is considering the workload management ahead of the 2019 World Cup. And we might expect a couple of senior players making way for youngsters to grab the opportunity with both hands. Meanwhile, we’re less than two weeks away to witness the kick-off of India vs Australia 2019 limited-over series. The Men in Blue’s home campaign will begin with a two-match Twenty20 International series, starting February 24 in Vizag. The second and final T20I will be held on February 27 at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Well, after the culmination of the T20 leg, the ODI series will run between March 2 until March 13. The limited-overs competition will culminate at Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in Delhi.
Squad introduction:
MS Dhoni, who has been instrumental in series Down Under, has to feature in the home series. However, to be precise, he hasn’t had enough matches in a bank if we take out Indian Premier League (IPL), in the lead up to the 2019 World Cup.
Earlier, it has been a career pointed out that senior would be used judiciously ahead of the United Kingdom (UK) event.
Interestingly, there is literally a tug of war for a couple of spots which would see Ambati Rayudu and KL Rahul fighting it out at the top.
Besides, wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik would face the litmus test before the forthcoming quadrennial event. Also, one among them would get a chance in the coveted World Cup squad.
On the other side, the spin duo Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav will get games to make it count. They will be crucial on India’s point of view while taking the problem of foreign players to tackle spin into consideration.
Apart from it, with the comeback of Jasprit Bumrah, the selectors are highly-likely to settle with promising youngsters. In the bowling department, Siddarth Kaul and left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed may make it to the squad.
Moreover, Mohammed Shami, who has improved a lot in white-ball cricket. He’s a key figure for India in the impending series.
All-rounder Hardik Pandya is an obvious choice, Vijay Shankar has a more role to play to book his World Cup spot. In addition, Shankar returned home on the back of a decent show in New Zealand.
By this, the selectors will meet in Mumbai on February 15 to announce the squad. Virat Kohli has a lot of options to play with.
Here’s the probable 15-member squad for the first three matches of the ODI series:
Virat Kohli (skipper), Ajinkya Rahane, KL Rahul, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Vijay Shankar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Khaleel Ahmed and Siddarth Kaul.