'We have...': Rahul Dravid provides big update on India's 2023 World Cup preparations

Ahead of the third and final ODI between India and Australia, in Chennai on Wednesday (March 22), Team India's head coach Rahul Dravid spilled the beans on the side's preparations for the 2023 ODI World Cup at home. Dravid revealed that the team management has already shortlisted 17-18 players for the showpiece event.

In a pre-match presser, Dravid told in Chennai, "Probably not going to get too many more games in our conditions. We had the opportunity to play in these conditions which is great. Yeah, coming out of the IPL to a large extent we are pretty clear about the kind of squad and the players we want. We have narrowed it down to 17-18 players."

'Within the squad we will like to keep the options. Overall,we are pretty much in good space'

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Dravid further opined, "We have some guys who are recovering from injuries and will come into the frame based on their recovery. All in all, we are pretty much in good space. We are able to give those who we have zeroed in on as many playing opportunities.

"There are a couple of different combinations that we would like to try. It is a big tournament, a long tournament in India, we want to have that flexibility in our squad. some times four fast bowlers, sometimes three spinners. Within the squad we will like to keep the options. just to ensure that we have covered all our bases for all conditions," he added.

Also Read:ODI World Cup likely to kick off on October 5, final on November 19 in Ahmedabad: Report

Rohit Sharma-led India are preparing hard for the marquee event but have several injury concerns. The likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant are out of action due to injuries. With a lot of cricket to be played in the run-up to the ODI World Cup, in the form of IPL 2023, ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final and Asia Cup 2023, the team management will hope for players to remain fresh and free from injuries. This will be India's biggest challenge heading into the ICC event at home.

As per reports, the ODI World Cup is set to kick off in India on October 05 and the final will be held in Ahmedabad on November 19. At present, India face Australia in the three-match ODI series finale, in Chennai, on Wednesday (March 22) with the series levelled at 1-1.