India coach Rahul Dravid confirms under-fire batter's place in XI for first two ODIs against Australia
Suryakumar Yadav’s super show gave India lead in 3-match T20I series
India head coach Rahul Dravid has confirmed that under-pressure batsman Suryakumar Yadav is going to play in the first two ODIs against Australia in the upcoming three-match series. The series against Australia starts Friday, September 22 in Mohali.
"We completely back Suryakumar Yadav. We believe he will do well in ODI Cricket and turn things around in ODIs, and will be getting an opportunity in the first two ODIs against Australia," Dravid said ahead of the first ODI.
With the ODI World Cup just a couple of weeks away, the Australia series gives India one final shot at ironing out the last few creases ahead of the quadrennial tournament. India although are in good form, as evident from their triumphant Asia Cup 2023 campaign.
Also Read:Jason Roy opts out of Ireland ODIs after England World Cup squad snub
The Men in Blue, however, have decided to rest key players from their World Cup squad for the first two ODIs against Australia. The players who have been rested include skipper Rohit Sharma, ace batter Virat Kohli, all-rounder Hardik Pandya and lead spinner Kuldeep Yadav.
The side will be led by KL Rahul in the first two games, who himself made a comeback in style at the Asia Cup 2023. The matches, Dravid's last chance to assess India's bench strength, will be a golden opportunity for Surya to step up and perform to the best of his abilities.
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The fact that Australia would be without their ace bowler Mitchell Starc and with Pat Cummins making a comeback after an injury, should give India and Surya a decent shot at minting money out of the situation.
Apart from Surya, it would also be interesting to see if India play spinner Ravichandran Ashwin who has been called up following an injury to Axar Patel at the Asia Cup.
As for the third ODI, India have named more or less the same squad which will play the ODI World Cup, with Axar retaining his place for now. The World Cup starts on October 5 next month and India start their campaign against Australia on October 8.
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