COMBINATION ANALYSIS
Follow UsThe Men in Blue are set to get back on the park in ODI cricket after a period of seven months. They last played this format in December 2023 when a young Indian side defeated the hosts South Africa 2-1 under the leadership of KL Rahul.
As things stand, India have six ODIs before the next white-ball mega event, the Champions Trophy, next year. The new head coach, Gautam Gambhir, summoned the senior batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, which indicates a full-strength Indian side in this ODI series, at least in the batting department.
Hence, a few spots in the XI seem to be written in stone for the first ODI, including the top three, Rohit, Shubman Gill and Kohli, the frontline spinner Kuldeep Yadav and the two frontline pacers, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj.
What about the other five spots? We explore the combination headaches ahead of the first fixture in this series, starting Friday (August 2) in Colombo.
Who goes on the bench between Iyer, Rahul and Pant?
Number four has always posed an interesting situation for India. Rahul took that spot in South Africa. However, he is India’s designated number five. The number four slot belonged to Shreyas Iyer in 2023, who batted 16 out of India’s 33 innings at the spot. He had a stellar 50-over World Cup last year, batting all his 11 innings in that position, averaging 66.3 at a strike rate of 113.3 for his 530 runs.
ODIs have been Iyer’s best format and with India returning to it, Iyer marks a comeback after the central contract fiasco earlier this year. In between, he won the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) captain, under the coaching of none other than Gambhir.
Hence, his comeback at his preferred number four spot seems well-deserved. But the equation isn’t as straightforward.
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Rishabh Pant is also back, having last played ODI cricket in November 2022. Number four has been his preferred slot as well, with 16 of his 26 innings coming at that spot.
The monotony of right-handers in the top five may persuade India to play Pant. If they have to fit him at five, then it becomes a decision between Pant and India’s incumbent ODI wicketkeeper-batter, Rahul. The Bengaluru-born performed the glovesman duties with aplomb and should continue in the role.
Post his recovery, Pant walked into the T20I setup unrivaled after a decent IPL season. However, there doesn’t seem to be a spot for him in the ODI side unless India make a major change from their earlier plans. A lot rests on how keen Gambhir is to have a left-hander in the top five.
Batting all-rounder – Parag or Dube?
No bowling option in the top five coerce India to play a batting all-rounder at number six. This is primarily why playing all three of Iyer, Rahul and Pant isn’t the most efficient option.
The toss-up for this slot and creating a sixth bowling option would be between Shivam Dube and Riyan Parag. While Parag is yet to make his debut in this format, Dube has played one ODI — against West Indies in 2019.
Considering the lack of experience in both options, the decision can solely come down to the playing conditions. A spin-friendly track may persuade India to play all three of their primary spinners, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar, with Dube in the XI as an optional seam bowler. However, if the conditions are rather flatter, Kuldeep might be accompanied by only one of Sundar or Axar, and Parag might be the sixth bowler alongside three frontline pace options.
Since 2022, 53.3% of the total ODI wickets at the R.Premadasa Stadium in Colombo have gone to spinners, thus making a case for Dube. The 31-year-old also has the advantage of being a left-hander.
But it would be tough to ignore the batting value of Parag, who plundered 354 runs in the Deodhar Trophy last season at a strike rate of 136.7.
India can also contemplate playing all four of Parag, Sundar, Axar, and Kuldeep, but this would eventually leave them with only two seam-bowling options in the XI. Can they play both Parag and Dube? That would be one specialist bowler less.
Who takes precedence between Axar and Washington?
If it comes to choosing between Axar and Washington, neither's 2023 bowling record favours them. Axar picked five wickets in 11 ODIs last year, while Washington managed only four wickets in seven matches.
But that is water under the bridge. Washington was one of India’s strike bowlers during the T20I series, while Axar regained his bowling mojo in India’s victorious T20 World Cup campaign.
However, Axar might be slightly ahead in terms of the pecking order and his batting value, having showcased his white-ball batting form on many occasions. You would think that being an off-spinner would work in Washington’s favour, but Parag’s presence in the squad cuts that out.
Third pacer?
Playing three frontline seamers will leave Gambhir and Co. with the call to choose one between Harshit Rana and Khaleel Ahmed. This might be the only case where a debutant is ahead of an experienced individual. Khaleel last played an ODI in 2019.
Meanwhile, Harshit had a brilliant IPL season (19 wickets in 11 innings at 20.2 runs apiece) under Gambhir’s coaching that has fast tracked him to the national side. But the real deal maker for Harshit here would be his batting. The 22-year-old has a first-class hundred to his name (122*).
If India feature three pacers, Harshit can lengthen the batting line-up at number eight or nine alongside Kuldeep.
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