India vs Sri Lanka 2024: ODI Series Official Best Playing 11

Rohit Sharma, the leader returns as we look at the best predicted playing 11 for India vs Sri Lanka 2024 ODI series.

It’s been more than 7 months since India last played a One Day International. It was against South Africa did India last play an ODI series, and that was a team that had a lot of senior players missing. But with Champions Trophy insight, India are leaving no stone unturned, and have almost selected a full-fledged squad against Sri Lanka with Gautam Gambhir as the Head Coach.

Team India are beginning the Gautam Gambhir coaching era with the 3-match T20 and ODI series vs Sri Lanka. While the T20 series may not be that important right away given the next T20 World Cup is two years away, the ODI series carries significant importance with the next ICC tournament being the Champions Trophy 2025. Needless to say, the ODI series vs SL is a stepping stone in India’s preparation for the Champions Trophy.

Overall, Team India have selected a 15-member squad for the ODI series, and barring a few important players like Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Shami, who are rested, the ODI Squad seems to be full-strength. So, with the squad data in front of us, what’s the best playing 11 for Team India for the ODI series vs Sri Lanka? Well, let’s find out in this article.

India vs Sri Lanka 2024 Official ODI Squad for Indian Team:

Batters: Rohit Sharma, Shreyas Iyer, Shubman Gill & Virat Kohli 

WKs: KL Rahul & Rishabh Pant

All-rounders: Axar Patel, Riyan Parag, Shivam Dube & Washington Sundar

Bowlers: Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Khaleel Ahmed, Kuldeep Yadav & Mohammed Siraj

India vs Sri Lanka 2024 ODI Series Strongest Playing 11:

Top-order

If we talk about the top-order for the Indian team, it is the same as what we can see in the 2023 ODI World Cup. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill shall be the primary openers, and Virat Kohli should follow them at number 3 position. Team India haven’t added any new members for these positions, and they want to continue giving this top-order more practice together.

Middle-order

With a settled top-order, we should see a change in the middle-order. After a long gap, Rishabh Pant shall return as the primary wicket-keeper of the squad. As we know, Pant had been out of the team due to accidental injuries, and had only recovered before IPL 2024. Having proved his fitness and form in IPL, he also made a good comeback in T20 World Cup 2024. With the Champions Trophy in mind, India are already looking at Pant as the first-choice keeper in the side.

With Pant in the side, India are most-likely to play only one between Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant. As we know, Shreyas Iyer hasn’t done anything bad to get dropped. Hence, only for this series, India are likely to play these together, and then evaluate who does better in the side. So, expect Shreyas Iyer to play at 4 and Rishabh Pant to play at 5.

Finishers

Coming or the finishers, India are without Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja. Hence, the team have no option but to play KL Rahul and Axar Patel as the finishers in the side. KL Rahul usually plays at 5, but with the inclusion of Pant, he is likely to play at number 6. Whereas Axar Patel will be a good add-on for India at the number 7 position. Unfortunately, India may have to let go of batting depth for this series.

Bowlers

With India letting go of batting depth due to lack of a pace all-rounder, India will have only 5 bowling including four frontline bowlers. For the primary bowlers, India should opt for 3 pacers and 1 spinner. While the Pace department shall be led by Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, and Khaleel Ahmed, the spin department shall be led by Kuldeep Yadav. There could also be a possibility of including Sundar for Khaleel or Kuldeep, but that possibility looks unlikely for now.

India vs Sri Lanka 2024 Strongest Playing 11 for T20 Series:

1. Rohit Sharma (c)
2. Shubman Gill
3. Virat Kohli
4. Shreyas Iyer
5. Rishabh Pant (wk)
6. KL Rahul
7. Axar Patel
8. Arshdeep Singh
9. Kuldeep Yadav
10. Khaleel Ahmed
11. Mohammed Siraj

So, that’s about the best playing 11 for Team India for the 2024 ODI series vs Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, here’s the official schedule for India vs Sri Lanka 2024 ODI series. 

India vs Sri Lanka 2024 ODI Series Schedule:

• 1st ODI – August 02 @ Colombo, 2:30 pm IST
• 2nd ODI – August 04 @ Colombo, 2:30 pm IST
• 3rd ODI – August 07 @ Colombo, 2:30 pm IST

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