India vs West Indies 2023: Strongest ODI Series Playing 11

Rohit Sharma to lead side as we look at the strongest playing 11 for Team India for the 2023 ODI series vs West Indies. 

The Indian team has arrived in the West Indies, and the preparation for the month-long tour has already started with practice sessions. Team India will be playing a total of 10 matches during the tour which will comprise 2 Tests, 3 ODIs, and 5 T20Is. The Test will start first followed by ODIs, and then by T20Is.

However, with ODI World Cup 2023 – the most important event of the year in hindsight, all eyes will be on how India play the format given this is their first outing in more than 3 months. A total of 17 players have been selected for the ODI series which sees some new names, and some first-choice players missing due to injuries. 

The ODIs will be played from July 27 to August 01, so we have around 3 weeks to go for the games. But with a slightly revamped squad, let’s analyze the players list, and look at the strongest playing 11 that Team India can deploy for the 2023 ODI series vs West Indies. Before that, let’s look at the official squad for Team India. 

India vs West Indies 2023 Official ODI Squad for Team India:

Batters: Rohit Sharma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav & Virat Kohli

WKs: Ishan Kishan & Sanju Samson

All-rounders: Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya & Ravindra Jadeja

Bowlers: Jaydev Unadkat, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Umran Malik & Yuzvendra Chahal

Team India’s Strongest Predicted Playing 11

Openers – Rohit Sharma [c] & Shubman Gill

If we talk about the openers for the Indian ODI team, we have a settled pair in the form of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. These two have been doing a superb job together, and they are most likely to open for the ODI World Cup 2023 too. In addition, India have backup openers in the form of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan.

Middle-order – Virat Kohli & Sanju Samson (wk)

Talking about the middle-order, Virat Kohli should continue to be the key batter at the number 3 position. But the talking point would be who plays as the wicket-keeper. Team India have selected two wicket-keepers in the form of left-hander Ishan Kishan and right-handed Sanju Samson. 

If we talk about what India would play, it would be Ishan Kishan for two reasons. One, he is the only left-hander in top 6, and second, he is the first-choice wicket-keeper in the team. But honestly, Ishan Kishan isn’t suited for middle-order. He should continue to play as a backup opener. Hence, Sanju Samson, who has done well in ODIs should play as the keeper in the West Indies series. 

Finishers – Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav & Ravindra Jadeja

Coming to the finishers, there isn’t much to choose except for the batting-order. Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, and Ravindra Jadeja form the finisher role in the team. But what position will Suryakumar Yadav play is the big question given the last ODI series was more of a nightmare for SKY.

If we observe SKY’s game, it is more suited for 20 overs kind of cricket. Hence, the ideal time for SKY to come to bat shall be around 30-35 overs. With that, Hardik too has changed his game slightly by being more cautious in his approach. So, if Hardik bats at 5 and SKY at 6, it is the best for the Indian team in ODIs. Meanwhile, Jadeja should continue to play at number 7 for Team India.  

Bowlers – Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj & Umran Malik

Finally, talking about the bowlers, Kuldeep Yadav should continue to lead the spin department for Team India. Kuldeep Yadav has been the preferred spinner in the ODIs, and that should continue to be with Yuzvendra Chahal on the sidelines. Whereas Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur should be the two first-choice pacers in the squad.

But the absence of Mohammed Shami means one of Jaydev Unadkat, Mukesh Kumar, or Umran Malik will play as the third pacer in the squad. If we take a cue from the last ODI series, Umran Malik did a pretty good job. So, there doesn’t seem to be any reason why Umran Malik shouldn’t continue as the third pacer in the squad. 

India vs West Indies 2023 – Strongest Predicted ODI Series Playing 11 for Team India:

Rohit Sharma [c], Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Sanju Samson (wk), Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj & Umran Malik

So, that’s about the strongest playing for Team India for the ODI series vs West Indies. Overall, the team will see a few changes with some key players like KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, and Mohammed Shami not being there. This leaves us 3 places to debate upon. Meanwhile, please find below the schedule for India vs West Indies ODI series. 

India vs West Indies 2023 ODI Series Schedule:

• 1st ODI – July 27, 7 pm IST @ Barbados
• 2nd ODI – July 29, 7 pm IST @ Barbados
• 3rd ODI – August 01, 7 pm IST @ Trinidad

Thanks for reading! What’s your India vs West Indies 2023 ODI series playing 11? Please email your thoughts to business@cricalytics.com

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Adesh Kothari

Adesh Kothari is the founder of AK4Tsay1 Cricalytics with over 20 years of experience following Cricket.

Cricket to him is like what Football is to Lionel Messi, Singing is to Lata Mangeshkar, Dancing is to Michael Jackson, and Acting is to Clint Eastwood.

Besides his effervescent love for Cricket, Adesh is an MBA by qualification.