India's predicted playing XI for the 2nd ODI against Australia
After a rough start to his ODI captaincy career with a whitewash in South Africa, KL Rahul's fortunes at the helm of the Indian team have turned around. The stand-in skipper oversaw an encouraging win over Australia in the series opener in Mohali on the back of wins over Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.
Rahul will attempt to take India to a series victory with a win in the second ODI, which will be his last game as skipper before Rohit Sharma returns for the final contest. Rohit won't be the only one to return, with Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav expected to be back as well.
Before that happens and India put out their best XI in the third ODI, they will want to try out all possible combinations. The Indore clash on Sunday, September 24, will give them their final opportunity to do the same.
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, and Prasidh Krishna.
Here is India's predicted playing XI for the second ODI against Australia.
Openers: Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan
This could be a tough call to make for India. Ruturaj Gaikwad was incredibly impressive in the series opener, making his maiden ODI fifty and showing his sheer class in the format. Shubman Gill, meanwhile, notched up another sumptuous fifty.
However, India weren't able to field Washington Sundar in the first ODI, and they must give him a chance to make an impact. They need to field three fast bowlers without Hardik Pandya, meaning that their only shot at including Sundar will be to sacrifice one of the openers.
The most logical thing to do would be to replace Gill, who has played almost all of India's games in the last few months and could use a breather. That would mean that the hosts would have another new opening pair in Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan, freeing up a spot in the middle order for Sundar.
This is a decision that could go either way. However, no harm can come of resting Gill, especially since he seems to be in such good form and doesn't really need to spend much time in the middle. Gaikwad could just as easily be replaced, though, despite his excellent performance in Mohali.
Middle Order: Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (c & wk), Suryakumar Yadav
India aren't going to make any changes to their middle order. Rahul could've perhaps used some rest but he has been named the captain of the side for the first two ODIs, hinting at the team management's plans.
Shreyas Iyer will be in the spotlight in Indore, having failed to make an impact since his return from a back injury. The batter, who endured a tough outing on all fronts in the series opener, desperately needs some runs under his belt.
Suryakumar Yadav had a productive outing in the first ODI, breaking a terrible run of form with a fluent half-century. One good knock won't be enough, however, and SKY will need to perform once again.
All-rounders: Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar
Ravindra Jadeja will have an eye on spending some time in the middle, and Kishan moving up to open the batting will help in that regard. He could be promoted ahead of Suryakumar to turn his poor returns around.
Head coach Rahul Dravid had spoken about trying out both off-spinners in the three-match series. It's tough to give Sundar a game in the decider when the regulars return, so India might have to field him in tandem with Ravichandran Ashwin in the second ODI.
Bowlers: Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami
India are expected to rotate their fast bowlers around, and Jasprit Bumrah might be the one to make way in the second ODI. He bowled 10 overs for the first time since his comeback from injury, and risking him wouldn't be a wise thing to do.
Bumrah could be replaced by Mohammed Siraj, who was rested for the previous game. Mohammed Shami looked like he could've used a breather following an energy-sapping effort in Mohali, but he was well-rested ahead of the game and should pull through.
Shardul Thakur, who was expensive in the first ODI, will eye an improved display this time around as his battle with Shami for a berth in the XI intensifies.