1st ODI: Gabbar back with Hitman! Shikhar Dhawan to open with Rohit Sharma

Skipper Virat Kohli confirms Dhawan and Rohit will open the innings in today’s first ODI against England as India deals with problem of plenty for perfect combination

Byline : Shreeram Gokhale

Following the Indian team’s win in a closely fought T20I series, the focus now shifts to the slightly longer format, as Virat Kohli’s men take on world champions England in the first of the three-match ODI series at the Maharashtra  Cricket Association stadium here on Tuesday.

The Indian team management faces the problem of plenty, especially in the batting department. It will be interesting to see what combination the team management opts for. With skipper Kohli confirming that Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan will open the batting, while he and Shreyas Iyer are the indispensable No. 3 and No. 4, the choice for No. 5 becomes crucial. India have trusted KL Rahul in that position for a while now with reasonable success. 

Will Suryakumar play?

But with Suryakumar Yadav showing terrific form in both his T20I innings, it will be tough to ignore him. Rahul’s below par T20I series doesn’t help his case either. 
On form, Rishabh Pant at No. 6 and Hardik Pandya at No. 7 looks a certainty too,  which effectively means Rahul could be the unfortunate one, at least for the time being. In realistic terms, he could be competing with Pant for the wicketkeeper’s slot or with Dhawan for the opener’s slot.

While Rahul could be the unlucky one, there is no luck involved as far as Suryakumar is concerned. He has waited for his opportunity patiently, has scored loads of runs time and again in domestic cricket, and has proven that he is ready for the top level and deserved his opportunity.

Suryakumar’s 31-ball 57 in his maiden T20I innings, followed by a 17-ball 32 is proof enough that he can play the role of the finisher or the guy who can up the tempo in the middle overs.

While the pace bowling department looks more or less sorted in the form of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Shardul Thakur, the spin department becomes an interesting choice. 
Kohli has usually preferred the tight off-spin of Washington Sundar and guile of leggie Yuzvendra Chahal. So, it won’t be a surprise if he sticks with  them, ahead of Krunal Pandya’s left-arm orthodox or Kuldeep Yadav’s chinaman. But that will mean Pandya has to bowl a full quota of 10 overs. Is he ready for it?

England are well set

England have a well-set white ball unit and a clear template about the way they like to go about it. The square boundaries are not too big, and that makes it important for the skippers to correctly choose the ends from which they operate their spinners.

The city of Pune has witnessed some unseasonal rain in the last couple of days and a couple of afternoon showers have been predicted for Tuesday too. 

Although it’s not expected to ruin play too much, the rain could add an interesting dimension to the match, possibly making the pitch a bit quicker and helping the ball come on to the bat nicely.

It looks like it will be a game full of runs. Unfortunately though, there would be no crowd to celebrate all those big hits, owing to the Covid-19 restrictions in the state.

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