India vs Australia second ODI: Will THIS player replace Rohit Sharma? Kuldeep Yadav likely to play

With the rain-truncated first ODI in Perth slipping out of their hands, India would be focusing on getting their combination right for the must-win second match on October 23.

 

Having lost the opener, which was reduced to 26 overs-a-side and was a stop-start affair, by seven wickets, India will have to win in Adelaide to keep their hopes alive in the three-match ODI series.

 

While it is true that the Perth match did not offer too much time to gauge the effectiveness of the Indian team combination, one should not be surprised, however, if the team management rings in a couple of changes. The failure of India’s batting stalwarts Rohit Sharma (8) and Virat Kohli (0) has once again put them in the spotlight. While it is likely that the duo will be given at least another match, the nets session on Wednesday has sparked off speculations that Sharma might be rested sooner than later if he fails with the bat yet again.

 

The former India skipper was the first to arrive at the optional nets session, and batted for long under the watchful eyes of head coach Gautam Gambhir, and also took throwdowns. Later, Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar were seen having an animated conversation with young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has been waiting in the wings. Earlier, Sharma, too, was seen talking to Jaiswal and giving him batting tips.

 

India may retain the same batting lineup for the second ODI, but the bowling combination is likely to be tweaked. Left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav is likely to be drafted into the playing XI to offer an attacking option, but it needs to be seen who will be dropped. Either offie Washington Sundar or pacer Harshit Rana is likely to make way for the veteran spinner.

 

Some reports also suggest that pacer Prasidh Krishna, with his extra pace and bounce, too, might get a look-in.

 

India squad:

Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna.

Australia squad:

Mitchell Marsh (captain), Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Owen, Josh Philippe, Matthew Renshaw, Matthew Short, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa. 

Sports