For whatever it’s worth, India Cricket Team will be back in ODI jersey a month after the loss in World Cup final. But this time, the 50-over format is not in focus. As a result, most senior players are missing the IND vs SA ODI series. And that has created a selection headache. Ruturaj Gaikwad and KL Rahul are the only two openers available for the IND vs SA 1st ODI. But as Rahul has made a name at No 5, India will have to pick from three options.
Apart from KL Rahul, Sai Sudharshan and Sanju Samson are two other options. In total, India have three players to choose from to partner Ruturaj Gaikwad in the IND vs SA 1st ODI.
KL Rahul
Among them the first one, is KL Rahul. The Indian captain in the series has established himself at No 5 spot with Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill opening the innings.
However, they are not available in the series. And that could force a change in the batting order. KL Rahul might as well return to the opening spot where he has three centuries and six half-centuries.
Sanju Samson
The other option would be Sanju Samson. The Kerala captain has been in good form but he has been playing in the middle-order even though he has opened the innings earlier.
Even in the IPL, Sanju Samson has shown his versatility, batting at No 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8 apart from opening the innings.
Will Sai Sudharshan make debut in IND vs SA 1st ODI?
Sai Sudharshan could be another option. The young batter from Tamil Nadu has already proven his skills in the IPL for Gujarat Titans after consistent showing in domestic cricket. As a result, he has got a maiden ODI call-up. But will India Cricket Team hand him international debut remains the big question.
A top-order batter, Sai Sudharshan has opened the innings on a few occasions. However, it’s No 3 and No 4 where he is most comfortable in. And that could prompt the team management to open up No 5 up for grabs with KL Rahul promoting himself to open the innings in IND vs SA 1st ODI.
India ODI squad: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sai Sudharsan, Tilak Varma, Rajat Patidar, Rinku Singh, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (C)(wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Deepak Chahar.
