The Indian cricket team on Thursday sweated it out in nets ahead of its first ODI of three-match series against Australia. India will take on Australia in the first ODI at Mohali on Friday. The three-match series against Australia will be India's final assignment before the ICC Cricket World Cup at home from October 5 onwards. Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul, India's skipper for the first two ODIs, and Suryakumar Yadav were seen practicing in the nets. This series will be crucial for Ruturaj and Tilak as it will give them some game time ahead of the start of their Asian Games men's cricket campaign from October 3 onwards. KL, who made a triumphant return in India's Asia Cup winning campaign recently, will also be aiming to unleash "KL 2.0", as he has been described by fans for looking more confident and aggressive while batting, on Aussies.
Suryakumar Yadav's future as an ODI player could also be dependent on this series, as after a disappointing run of performances in the 50-over format has seen many fans call for his axing from the squad. Scoring 537 in 27 ODIs at an average of around 24 with just two fifties, time is ticking for this batter, who has on the other hand has experienced one of the greatest peaks of form ever in T20Is.
1,841 runs in 53 T20I matches at an average of over 46, a strike rate of above 172 and three centuries, and 15 fifties sit in contrast with his ODI stats. This has left many wondering why he has not cracked the ODI code till yet. On the other hand, many players, fans and even team management continue to back him, hoping that this ferocious ball-striker will find his feet in ODIs and replicate his otherworldly T20I performances.
Preps before the start of a cracking series #TeamIndia | #INDvAUS pic.twitter.com/Jmwm7FkfmN
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 21, 2023
Ahead of the match, head coach Rahul Dravid said about Surya, "We have picked our team for the World Cup and Surya is in it."
"We made that decision to do that and we completely back him. We back him because he's got a certain quality and an ability that we have seen. Yes, I know we have seen it at the moment only in T20 cricket, but we know the kind of impact a player like him can make batting at six."
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 21, 2023
"He can change the course of a game, so we have completely backed him. We have been pretty clear about that. There's been total clarity on the fact that we are completely behind him."
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 21, 2023
"We know that hopefully, he will be able to turn it around in these three games. Again, he is someone who will get these three games, and at least the first couple certainly, to be able to again develop and keep growing on his journey as a one-day cricketer," Dravid concluded.
India squad for first 2 ODIs: KL Rahul (Captain & Wicket Keeper), Ravindra Jadeja (Vice-captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar, R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
India squad for final ODI: Rohit Sharma (C), Hardik Pandya, (Vice-captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel (subject to fitness), Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj.
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