Gautam Gambhir Virat Kohli Rohit Sharma KL Rahul for India. Image Credits: AFP
After a shameful defeat in the T20I series, Team India is set to take on a new challenge in the form of the three-match ODI series against England, starting at Edgbaston on July 14. The IND vs ENG ODIs will see a return of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul and Jasprit Bumrah.
On the eve of the first ODI fixture, Captain Shubman Gill spoke heavily about the importance of the two stalwarts of Indian Cricket, Rohit Sharma and Virat Sharma, and what they bring to the table.
Combined, Sharma and Kohli bring nearly 600 ODI fixtures of experience, which is said to be India’s biggest flex heading towards the ODI World Cup 2027.
India to adopt rotation policy for Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul
However, Team India may not play three of their most experienced batters - Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul - together at any point in the series. Reportedly, the Gautam Gambhir-led team management is keen on adopting a rotation policy as part of their World Cup planning.
According to the Times of India, the management has wanted to bring in the rotation policy in ODI setup for a while, as they want to test young and inexperienced players before the marquee event next year.
"The team management and the selectors are trying to convince the senior players about the rotation policy for a while now," a report from TOI said.
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It has been said that Team India wanted to rest Rohit Sharma for the third ODI fixture against Afghanistan at Chennai to give a chance to Yashasvi Jaiswal at the top of the order, but the former Indian captain denied it.
During that series, skipper Gill batted at number 3 at times, while Sharma and Jaiswal opened the innings on those occasions.
Not just Rohit Sharma, but Virat Kohli and KL Rahul are also on thin ice; if the opening batter gets the axe, some thunder will fall on the remaining two batters as well.
"The pressure will be on Rohit if he gets a full run in this series with no Jaiswal around. The team management would prefer him scoring in the initial stages of the series rather than going big in the last match of a series as he has been doing in the last few series," the report added.
It has been reported that if Rohit's form dips, then India will look to groom Jaiswal for the ODI World Cup in the South African continent.
When MS Dhoni rested Gautam Gambhir as per rotation policy
The Indian head coach is no newbie to the rotation policy, as he himself suffered under it. During his playing days, the MS Dhoni-led side adopted such measures just to give fair chances to the likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina during the Tri-Series in Australia in 2012.
Dhoni’s rotation policy, where he played two of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Gambhir at a time, worked a charm for Team India. The three stalwarts weren’t part of the 2015 World Cup squad, while the young Kohlis, Sharmas and Rainas hoisted India’s flag in a tournament where they reached the semifinal.
Although Gambhir and the team management’s conscience is undoubtedly in the right place, with the next ODI World Cup nearly a year away, testing younger players for the experienced men might backfire.
India's squad for England ODIs
The India vs England ODI series will begin at Birmingham’s Edgbaston Stadium on Tuesday, before the caravan moves to Cardiff for the second ODI on Thursday and then finally to Lord’s Cricket Ground on Sunday.
India’s ODI squad: Shubman Gill (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (Vice-Captain), KL Rahul (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Gurnoor Brar, Shivam Dube.
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