When the Team India squad for the white-ball tour of Sri Lanka was announced, Suryakumar Yadav experienced a bittersweet moment. He was over the moon with the assignment as T20I captain, but he faced disappointment because he was dropped from the ODI squad. The message from the selectors, along with the new head coach Gautam Gambhir was clear: despite being in India’s ODI World Cup squad in 2023, Suryakumar did not do enough.
The versatile batter known for his 360-degree stroke play was subsequently dropped from the ODI team which travelled to Sri Lanka. While Suryakumar Yadav’s form in T20 cricket is indeed commendable—arguably, one of the best in this format—in a 50-over format, it has been very average. Suryakumar averages 25.76 in 37 ODIs. His critics argue that he does not have the ability to adjust his game in the longer format and acquire the needed patience and skill to raise the scoring rate progressively.
The selectors are keen to try out other options as well with only six ODIs remaining before next year’s ICC Champions Trophy. According to the Indian Express, Nitish Reddy of Sunrisers Hyderabad is being considered due to his versatile three-dimensional skill set.
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However, Hardik Pandya, India’s premier seam-bowling all-rounder, won’t be a part of this ODI series against Sri Lanka but is expected to return in future assignments. Data becomes an important criterion for India’s ODI captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Gautam Gambhir while picking their team.
It is this penchant for data that has thrown Axar Patel and Washington Sundar into the forefront as an attractive proposition in white-ball cricket, sidelining Ravindra Jadeja. Riyan Parag is another player who could get an opportunity in the Sri Lanka series. Parag is a dependable lower-order batter who can also provide some useful overs with the ball.
Riyan Parag’s consistency over the last couple of seasons in the Vijay Hazare Trophy has proven his worth as an all-rounder. With possibilities, though, Parag may not be the first on the team sheet, especially considering the experience that Axar Patel and Washington Sundar bring to this lineup.
As Team India gets ready for the white-ball series against Sri Lanka, team selection has been a mix of some strategic decisions and future planning toward building a robust side for upcoming international challenges.
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India’s ODI Squad vs Sri Lanka: Rohit Sharma (capt), Ꮪhubman Gill (vice-capt), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Riyan Parag, Axar Patel, Khaleel Ahmed, Harshit Rana.
