Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], Jan 12 : India batting coach Vikram Rathour on Sunday confirmed that the team will field their best XI for the first ODI against Australia and will look to experiment as the series will progress.
“In the first game against Australia, I think we will start with our best XI and everyone will bat in their order. And then as the series goes, we will see if we can experiment and try something different,” Rathour said in the pre-match press conference.
The Virat Kohli-led side experimented a lot in the third T20I against Sri Lanka as they made three changes to the squad and the skipper batted very low in the order.
Men In Blue will also have to make hard choices selecting their opening pair as all three batsmen – Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul – have been on a sublime form.
Sharma was rested for the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka which India won by 2-0.
Rathour said it is a ‘good dilemma’ to have and will deal with the conundrum when they will have to.
“It is a good dilemma to have. Rohit is an obvious choice of course. Both Shikhar and Rahul are playing well. Shikhar has done tremendously well in one-days and Rahul is in great form. We will deal with it when we have to, there are still couple of days to go. The management will sit and make this choice,” he said.
Rathour also backed Rishabh Pant as the ‘first wicket-keeping option’ for the team.
“We have not really started thinking over those lines yet. At this point, Pant is the first wicket-keeping option. Rahul can keep and that is the skills he has and that will depend if the team management feels that at any stage later we require it,” Rathour said.
The first ODI between India and Australia will be played on January 14.
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