As the focus shifts to white-ball cricket, the two superstars of the format — Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli — will hope to get back to beast mode in the three-match ODI series against England as India begin their final preparations for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy, starting February 19.
The two stars, after making hyped but disappointing appearances in the Ranji Trophy last month, will be eyeing strong performances in a format that they have dominated for several years. They were the top two run-getters of the 2023 World Cup with Kohli scoring 765 and Rohit smashing 597.
Since that World Cup, which India let slip in the final after going unbeaten throughout, the two have only featured in a three-match ODI series loss to Sri Lanka where Rohit scored two fifties while Kohli didn’t have a great run.
The slump intensified in red-ball cricket and in the last three months, the two architects of India’s most recent T20 World Cup triumph have faced numerous calls to decide on their future.
The ODI series against England is India’s only build-up in the run-up to the Champions Trophy, to be held in Pakistan and Dubai from February 19. The eight-team competition could be a make-or-break event for the two stalwarts who have already retired from T20Is.
Besides the form of the iconic duo, the outfit faces a few other headaches, and the primary one is the choice of the wicketkeeper-batter between KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant.
With skipper Rohit and his deputy Shubman Gill likely to open, followed by Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and Hardik Pandya, the wicketkeeper-batter is likely to slot in at number five.
Rahul, who kept wickets in Pant’s absence during the 2023 World Cup, performed admirably, scoring 452 runs and proving to be one of India’s most consistent middle-order batters. On the other hand, the left-handed Pant offers variety in India’s right-hand dominated top order.
The Indian think tank could always go with both but that would likely come at the expense of Iyer, who despite under-performing in the Sri Lanka series, has been a prolific contributor. His exploits in the domestic season are hard to ignore.
Big test for Shami
The series will also test the fitness of seasoned pacer Mohammed Shami and wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav, both of whom had been laid low by injuries and could be key to India’s success in the Champions Trophy.
While Shami played two T20Is against England in the recently-concluded series, Kuldeep hasn’t donned the India colours since the first Test against New Zealand in October.
In the absence of pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who was dropped from the 16-member squad against England, although he’s still in the Champions Trophy squad, Shami will be expected to lead the attack alongside left-arm quick Arshdeep Singh.
In-form mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy is expected to get a debut to strengthen his case for inclusion in the Champions Trophy squad. He troubled the England batters in the T20Is after bamboozling Bangladesh in another home series last October.
The team management will be spoilt for choices for the spin all-rounder’s position. Ravindra Jadeja, who hasn’t played an ODI since the 2023 ODI World Cup final, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar are all in contention and it is not yet clear how this will be settled.
England too will look to work on their shortcomings and present a stronger challenge. Joe Root is the only addition to their batting line-up which will largely be the same as the one that struggled in the T20Is. Wicketkeeper Jamie Smith is likely to miss the first two ODIs due to a calf issue.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy
England: Jos Buttler (c), Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Philip Salt, Jamie Smith, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Liam Livingstone, Jamie Overton, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood