India is now set to play international cricket after a long gap of almost 9 months. The two-month-long tour of Australia will begin from 27 November 2020 when India will be up against the Kangaroos in the first of the three ODIs to be played.
In the absence of Rohit Sharma, India surely have a big void to fill and the Men in Blue would look to bolster their batting line-up to make up for Rohit’s absence. Therefore, the question looms over who all will be in the playing XI in the first ODI. Here is what an ideal starting playing XI for India should look like.
India’s predicted playing XI for Australia Tour 2020-21
TOP ORDER
1.Shikhar Dhawan
The inclusion of Dhawan was an absolute no-brainer. A natural stroke player, Dhawan can take the bowlers on during the early part of the game and can play long inning too. He has also been in some scintillating form in the recently concluded IPL and would look to carry on that form in the Tour Down Under.
2. Mayank Agarwal
Choosing Dhawan’s partner may be a bit tough for Kohli but going with Mayank might pay good dividends for the team. He played magnificently against the Aussies last year in the Border Gavaskar Trophy and hence has a better knowledge of the conditions and the bowling attack.
3. Virat Kohli
The Indian captain is at his very best at number 3. It has often been seen that the skipper has looked to push himself down to number 4 to accommodate another top-order batsman but him batting at number 3 is vital for the success of Men in Blue Down Under.
MIDDLE ORDER
4. Shreyas Iyer
Iyer with his solid technique and aggressive style of play, especially against the spinners, is the perfect choice for number 4. He can steady the ship if the team suffers some early losses, and can also keep the scoreboard ticking in the middle overs against the spinners.
5. KL Rahul ( Wicket-Keeper )
KL Rahul, playing at 5, was phenomenal against the Kangaroos and the Kiwis earlier this year before the pandemic struck. He, along with Iyer, will make a formidable middle order for India. He will also keep wickets in this team.
LOWER MIDDLE ORDER
Due to the lack of batsmen who can roll their arm over, playing with only 5 bowlers might prove to be detrimental for the Indian team. Options like Samson and Manish Pandey may seem tempting but playing any one of them will make the bowling department weak.
6. Hardik Pandya
Hardik Pandya might not be fully fit bowl 10 overs but he can still chip in with a few overs to provide a much-needed balance to the bowling line-up. And with the bat in hand, he is an absolute beast who can murder any bowling attack on his day.
7. Ravindra Jadeja
Jadeja has proven his worth with the bat time and again and can also choke the run rate in the middle overs with his left-arm spin. Add to that, he is one of the best in the business when it comes to taking those tough catches and effecting some remarkable run-outs.
LOWER ORDER
8. Yuzvendra Chahal
Chahal, with his clever bowling, can rattle any batting line-up on his day. He posed a lot of problems for the Aussie batsmen when India last toured Australia in early 2019. Chahal’s biggest strength lies in tossing the ball up and bigger grounds in Australia will allow him to do so more often.
9. Jasprit Bumrah
Bumrah has been India’s premier fast bowler in the past few years and can turn around matches with his all-round ability with the ball. He can nip the ball around when the ball is new and currently is the best death bowler in the world. His vicious bouncers and fierce yorkers can trouble even the finest of batsmen.
10. Mohammad Shami
Shami will share the new ball with Bumrah. He too can make the ball talk in early overs and can also unsettle batsmen with a barrage of short balls. Recently, in the IPL, he proved his death bowling mettle when he nailed six yorkers in the Super Over to deny Mumbai Indians a win.
11. Navdeep Saini
Saini, with his pinpoint accuracy and the ability to get that extra bounce off the pitch, is a must-have weapon if India wants to unsettle the likes of Warner and Smith. He has impressed everyone with his performances in his brief international career and continues to be Virat’s go-to man in tough times at RCB.
INDIA: Shikhar Dhawan, Mayank Agarwal, Virat Kohli(c), Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Navdeep Saini
“The article was contributed by Priyanshu Gupta.”
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