Indian captain Rohit Sharma is well aware of the choices available to Team India to field a winning playing XI in the ICC World Cup, the biggest platform of them all. With India considering launching a three-pronged spin assault against the five-time champions in Chennai, Australia may be in for a spin bowling onslaught in their World Cup 2023 opener.
The MA Chidambaram Stadium’s surface is known to favor slower bowlers, therefore India captain Rohit Sharma claimed it was “definitely an option” to start Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, and Ravichandran Ashwin together.
The fact that Australia has historically had the best proportion of success in one-day internationals in the subcontinent at Chennai, where they have won five out of six games, including a 21-run victory at the beachside stadium in March of this year, doesn’t worry them.
The veteran Indian opener Rohit Sharma has returned for his third One Day International (ODI) pinnacle event as the captain of the Men In Blue after being dropped from India’s World Cup-winning side the last time the Asian giants hosted the 50-over spectacle.
Three spinners at Chepauk: Rohit Sharma
At the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Sunday, Rohit and company will begin India’s campaign for a third ODI World Cup trophy by facing off against Australia. On the eve of India’s World Cup debut against the five-time champions, Rohit explained to media that the in-form Shubman Gill is not expected to miss the game.
The Indian captain responded to multiple clamoring inquiries by stating that the Rahul Dravid-coached team is willing to use Ravichandran Ashwin at the Chepauk.
Rohit acknowledged that India can afford to field three spinners in their matchup with Australia, specifically mentioning all-arounder Hardik Pandya. The other two spinners are Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav.
“Yeah, I guess that’s the luxury we have, since I don’t really think of Hardik Pandya as just a seamer, that we can afford to play three spinners. Hardik is a legitimate fast bowler with good acceleration. That therefore gives us a benefit. As a result, we have the luxury of using three spinners and three seamers simultaneously. So, there’s a chance of it,” Rohit Sharma stated at the news conference prior to the game.
After Axar Patel suffered a groin injury during the Asia Cup, Ashwin was a last-minute inclusion to the host nation’s 15-player World Cup roster. Despite this, Ashwin surprised with four wickets against Australia in the first two ODIs last month, despite not having played for India in the 50-over format since January 2022.
Because of Ashwin’s menace, David Warner batted right-handed in the second One-Day International in Indore before being out caught trying to reverse sweep the off-spinner with his other hand.
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