Will Sanju Samson or Ishan Kishan get a chance in upcoming India vs West Indies (IND vs WI) ODI series? That’s the question in the mind of everyone ever since the duo has been named in India Squad for the WI series.
Sanju Samson played only once in 2022 vs New Zealand and then he got dropped from the playing XI. The Kerala captain is now back in the India squad after much wait.
But with Ishan Kishan and SuryaKumar Yadav in the mix, Sanju Samson is not a sure-shot starter in the playing XI.
With the ODI World Cup 2023 looming, all eyes will be on how India performs in the format, given this is their first trip in more than three months.
So here we analyise, India’s strongest playing XI for the West Indies ODI series.
Rohit Sharma (c) and Shubman Gill are the openers
When it comes to the Indian ODI team’s openers, Men in Blue have a stable partnership in the form of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. These two have been outstanding together, and they are expected to open the ODI World Cup in 2023 as well.
Additionally, India has backup openers in Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan.
Virat Kohli and Sanju Samson (wk) bat in the middle order
When it comes to the middle order, Virat Kohli will remain the important batter at number three.
The main talking point, however, will be who plays as the wicketkeeper. Team India has chosen two wicket-keepers: left-hander Ishan Kishan and right-hander Sanju Samson.
If we talk about who India would play, Ishan Kishan comes to mind for two reasons. He is the lone left-hander in the top six, and he is also the team’s first-choice wicket-keeper.
But, to be honest, Ishan Kishan isn’t cut out for middle-order. He should keep playing as a backup opener. As a result, Sanju Samson, who has performed well in ODIs, should start the West Indies series as the keeper.
Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, and Ravindra Jadeja are the finishers.
Except for the batting order, there isn’t much to pick from when it comes to finishers. The team’s finishers are Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, and Ravindra Jadeja. The key question is where Suryakumar Yadav will bat, given that the last ODI series was a nightmare for SKY.
If we look at SKY’s game, we can see that it is more suited to 20-over cricket. As a result, the optimal moment for SKY to bat will be around 30-35 overs. As a result, Hardik has altered his strategy slightly, being more cautious in his approach.
So, Hardik Pandya batting at 5 and SKY at 6 is the greatest option for the Indian side in ODIs. Meanwhile, Jadeja should continue to play in the number seven position for Team India.
Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, and Umran Malik are the bowlers.
Finally, when it comes to bowlers, Kuldeep Yadav should continue to lead Team India’s spin department. With Yuzvendra Chahal on the sidelines, Kuldeep Yadav should continue to be the primary spinner in ODIs.
Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur, on the other hand, should be the team’s first-choice pacers.
However, the absence of Mohammed Shami means that one of Jaydev Unadkat, Mukesh Kumar, or Umran Malik will fill in as the squad’s third pacer. Umran Malik performed admirably in the most recent ODI series. So there doesn’t appear to be any reason why Umran Malik shouldn’t continue as the squad’s third pacer.
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