Cricket legend and 1983 World Cup winner Kris Srikkanth has selected his Dream India XI for the first ODI against Australia. The match will be played at Optus Stadium in Perth on Sunday.
Srikkanth has formed the team keeping in mind the return of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, with Shubman Gill as captain and Shreyas Iyer as vice-captain.
However, he has left out Harshit Rana, despite Gautam Gambhir recently criticizing Srikkanth for criticizing Harshit.
Harshit Rana is not included in Srikkanth’s team.
Srikkanth’s top order consists of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, and Shreyas Iyer. KL Rahul has been placed at number five as wicketkeeper-batsman.
The middle order consists of three all-rounders: Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Washington Sundar.
The bowling lineup consists of Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna. Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana have been left out. Srikkanth has placed Sundar at number eight to increase batting depth.
He said on his YouTube channel, “If you look at the trend, they are playing with eight batters. The number eight should also be able to bat. If you are thinking of batting till eight, Washington Sundar should be the automatic choice.
I will still play Sundar at eight, Kuldeep at nine, and Siraj and Prasidh Krishna at ten and eleven. I will use Nitish as the third seamer and still go with three spinners.”
Bumrah’s absence and bowling strategy
Srikkanth said that Jasprit Bumrah’s absence is a big blow for India. Siraj and Prasidh will have to shoulder the pace bowling responsibility.
He denied dropping Kuldeep and revealed a four-bowler strategy for Australian conditions.
He further said, “By any chance, if it’s a juicy wicket, there are Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc; they have a more experienced pace attack. Bumrah is going to be a big miss for us, so we will be dependent on Siraj and Prasidh.
You can’t drop Kuldeep. If you say you will drop Kuldeep and play Washington, it would be unfair to Kuldeep. If I were captain, I would play Siraj, Kuldeep, Washington, and Prasidh.”
Srikkand explained the reason for choosing Prasidh Krishna over Arshdeep Singh. He said that Australian pitches offer extra bounce, which is beneficial for Prasidh.
He concluded by saying, “Arshdeep has done no wrong, but the problem is with the combination. Why not bowl Prasidh over Arshdeep? This is not T20. This is ODI. Prasidh can get extra bounce in Australian wickets.”
Kris Srikkanth Selected India XI
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vice-captain), KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.
