ODI World Cup 2023: Playing three spinners is an option, says Rohit Sharma ahead of India-Aus clash

Indian skipper Rohit Sharma hinted at including three spinners in the team that would be taking on Australia, in what will be the first match for both teams in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.The Indian spin trio comprises Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav.Being held in Chennai, this will be the 150thInternational cricket contest between India and Australia. Notably, Ashwin hails from Chennai and Ravindra Jadeja has a great deal of experience playing at this pitch, thanks to his longstanding association with the IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings.

In the pre-match presser, Rohit expressed confidence ahead of Sunday's game and shared that the team had come well prepared. "It means a lot to even be a part of the World Cup team, and getting to captain the side is something I don't know how to describe," he said. Referring to the captaincy bestowed upon him as a huge honour, Rohit said that his sixteen-year long experience would come handy in handling the pressure of playing the World Cup before a home crowd.

In March 2023, Australia had defeated India at Chennai in what was the third and final match of their ODI series in India. They had defeated India by 21 runs and bagged the series 2-1. Commenting on the earlier match, Rohit acknowledged that the team knows what went wrong and it is crucial to not repeat the same mistakes. On the pitch conditions, Rohit said that the pitch in Chennai is known to be tricky, undergo a lot of changes and pose challenges. However, he said that the heat, humidity was lesser compared to that of March.

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On the option of playing three spinners, Rohit said that he considered Hardik Pandya as a pace bowler and that the team could play three spinners and three pacers."He (Hardik) is a proper fast bowler, who can crank up good speed. So that gives us an advantage. That gives us that luxury of playing three spinners and three seamers as well you know so there's a possibility that we can play three spinners on this pitch with three seamers as well, so it gives us that balance."

"We want to be a team where we want to play the best eleven and we need to choose based on conditions. The core team will remain the same, but one odd change will be there," he added.

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