3 reasons why India should've picked a full-strength squad for the first 2 ODIs vs Australia
Team India have announced their squads for the upcoming ODI series against Australia, which will be their last assignment before the World Cup 2023. They have rested some of their key players for the first two ODIs of the three-match rubber.
Captain Rohit Sharma and former skipper Virat Kohli are two of the biggest absentees. All-rounder Hardik Pandya and star spinner Kuldeep Yadav are the others who haven't been named.
India's squad for the first two ODIs against Australia: KL Rahul (c & wk), Ravindra Jadeja (vc), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar, R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.
India's squad for the 3rd ODI against Australia: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya, (vc), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel (subject to fitness), Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj.
Here are three reasons why India should've picked a full-strength squad for the first two ODIs against Australia.
#3 Australia have announced a full-strength squad, and India will know where they stand
Sri Lanka are a team on the rise, and Bangladesh have proven themselves to be a team capable of hanging with the best in ODIs. Not much needs to be said about Pakistan, who are a real force.
However, without any disrespect to the above teams, did India really test themselves while playing them in the recently concluded Asia Cup 2023? The Men in Blue were pushed to the hilt by both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, with the latter even claiming an unprecedented win. Pakistan, too, had their moments in the group-stage contest that didn't yield a result.
India had an excellent chance to test their first-choice side against a quality opposition like Australia, who have named their best available team. Only Travis Head, who suffered an injury while facing South Africa, isn't in the mix.
The opportunity of three games against one of the World Cup favorites was right there. But now, India won't have four of their most important ODI players in two of the three matches.
#2 India shouldn't be making such changes so close to the World Cup 2023
With India having a tight schedule involving a ton of travel in both in the ODIs against Australia as well as the World Cup, they perhaps didn't want to add to the fatigue of Rohit, Kohli and Co.
But it's arguable that the time for experimentation and resting has already passed. As mentioned multiple times already, only three matches stand between India and the World Cup. Their key batters and bowlers need to play as many balls as possible between now and the showpiece event, which will be as high-profile a competition as any.
Until now, it was understandable that India wanted to build a solid squad, and therefore wanted to rest their most established names. At this point in time, though, the best team needs to play together as often as possible.
#1 Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, in particular, have missed several games over the last eight months
![Virat Kohli [right] with a practice bib on has become a common sight](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2023/09/76c17-16950952706859-1920.jpg)
Virat Kohli has played only six ODIs since the end of March. In those six matches, he has batted only thrice. Rohit Sharma, meanwhile, has played seven in the same period. He has batted in six of them, opening the batting five times.
Both Rohit and Kohli are, with the big picture in mind, well-rested. They have been afforded frequent breaks across formats over the last couple of years, and seeing them off the field has become rather common.
Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav, on the other hand, have been more involved. But have they been overworked? Both players seem to be fresh and firing, with the former taking up a reasonable amount of bowling duties and the latter not being either a multi-faceted cricketer or a fast bowler.
Did they really need the rest? Or are India attempting to err on the side of caution and taking it a step too far in the process?
Only the players themselves and the management know the answers to those questions. On the bright side, these four names will most definitely be at their freshest when they return.