India cricket team could be forced to make changes to their playing XI for the IND vs AUS 3rd ODI, having lost the series 2-0 already. Shubman Gill and Gautam Gambhir’s choice to leave out their best spinner – Kuldeep Yadav – from the playing XI in both contests that were held so far is baffling the least to say, at least at venues which are quite big and favour spinners. With one last chance for Gill to redeem himself as the ODI captain in his first series, a change in the playing XI is necessary, even if it goes against the coach’s rationale of favouring all-rounders and certain players.
Predicted India playing XI for IND vs AUS 3rd ODI
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (C), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj
Kuldeep’s inclusion in the XI for the IND vs AUS 3rd ODI is a non-brainer. While he should have been played at a big ground like in Adelaide, it is quite unfortunate that India went ahead with three pacers and three all-rounders for both the contests held so far. At SCG, where the pitch is expected to favour spinners once again, India shouldn’t make the mistake of leaving out the spinner once again, especially after they have witnessed what Adam Zampa and Cooper Connolly did in the previous game.
There are two options for India to pursue in order to accommodate Kuldeep in the XI – either bench Harshit Rana or leave out Washington Sundar. The all-rounder has been used only for 9 overs so far in the IND vs AUS ODI series, where he has managed to pick two wickets while going on to score 22 runs. Meanwhile, Rana impressed with a 24-run cameo in the 2nd ODI despite being quite expensive with the ball in both the games so far.
Meanwhile, there are no questions about dropping either Virat or Rohit, given their charisma and ability to pull crowds. Despite Kohli registering two consecutive ducks, he is heavily unlikely to be dropped from the playing XI. Meanwhile, Sharma proved that he’s still got it with a 73-run spirited knock, unlike his usual self, in Adelaide.
