The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will announce the India cricket team’s squad for the England ODIs shortly after the Afghanistan series concludes on June 20 in Chennai. After a gruelling two-month-long Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season and a one-off Test in Mullanpur, a few old names are expected to return.
Jasprit Bumrah & Mohammed Siraj to return
For the Afghanistan Test and ODIs, Jasprit Bumrah was rested. Mohammed Siraj featured in the red-ball match. Therefore, he was rested from 50-over matches. With the preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup underway, both are expected to feature in the India vs England ODI series.
Bumrah hasn’t played an ODI since the World Cup final against Australia on November 19, 2023. He was to play in the 2025 Champions Trophy but couldn’t due to injury. Now, Bumrah is expected to return. Siraj has played just 9 ODIs in the last 30 months. He wasn’t selected for the Champions Trophy because India decided to pick just 2 fast bowlers.
But Siraj remains one of the top 50-over fast bowlers, especially now that the management and selectors have moved on from Mohammed Shami, who’s India’s highest wicket-taker in the format since 2019. Siraj has 74 wickets in 46 innings when opening the bowling for India.
Harshit Rana over Arshdeep Singh
Harshit Rana was included in India’s squad for the Chennai ODI against Afghanistan. He’s expected to travel with the team to England as well. Rana hasn’t played any cricket since February after he sustained a knee injury and had to undergo surgery. He basically replaced Hardik Pandya, who has been ruled out of the India vs England series.
India is not likely to take more than 4 fast bowlers to England. But Rana isn’t just a pacer. He has shown that he has batting ability. So, he’ll make the team ahead of others. The point now is, who goes out? Out of Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav and Gurnoor Brar, only two can go.
Arshdeep is a new-ball bowler. But both Prasidh and Gurnoor have shown their powerplay skills in the India vs Afghanistan ODIs. Moreover, they are both proficient in the middle overs. They bowl faster as well. They’ll most likely make the team ahead of Arshdeep.
No place for Prince Yadav
As for Prince Yadav, he showed hints of what he can do against Afghanistan. But overall, he was the least impressive Indian pacer in the series. He’ll unfortunately miss out. Although he’s a well-rounded fast bowler and has the ability to bowl in all phases, Prince hasn’t wowed anyone like Gurnoor or Prasidh have.
India’s fast-bowling line-up for England ODI series
Jasprit Bumrah (replaces Arshdeep Singh), Mohammed Siraj (replaces Prince Yadav), Harshit Rana (comes in for Hardik Pandya and ahead of Arshdeep Singh), Prasidh Krishna and Gurnoor Brar (over Prince Yadav)
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