India will begin its CWC journey against Australia in Chennai on October 8.
England and New Zealand will play in the ICC World Cup 2023 opening match in Ahmedabad on October 5. India will begin their CWC 2023 journey on October 8 against Australia in Chennai. The Men in Blue will then play Afghanistan on October 11 and against Pakistan in the big clash in Ahmedabad on October 14.
The Indian team management had to make one forced change in their 15-member squad as left-arm spinner Akshar Patel, who had suffered a quad injury during Asia Cup 2023, was replaced by R Ashwin. Akshar still needs more time to get 100% fit and hence India brought in experienced R Ashwin into the side.
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Keeping this in mind, here is the COC Predicted strongest Team India playing XI for World Cup 2023:
Captain Rohit Sharma and in-form batter Shubman Gill are expected to open the innings for India. The duo has done well in 2023 when Gill was promoted to open the batting. While Rohit has changed his game to be more aggressive at the start, Gill is having a purple patch in ODIs in 2023.
The no. 3 spot will see legend Virat Kohli completing the top order. For the middle order, Shreyas Iyer at 4, KL Rahul at 5, and Hardik Pandya at 6 might be the best combination for the Men in Blue. Iyer and Rahul recently hit centuries and have been in good form since their return from injuries. KL Rahul is also expected to keep the wickets.
Virat Kohli is the glue that holds the Indian batting together and all eyes will be on him as he nears the ODI centuries record of Sachin Tendulkar. With 47 tons to his name, Kohli needs just 3 more centuries to go past Tendulkar’s record of 49 ODI hundreds.
India might change things a bit when needed as they have Ishan Kishan who brings in the left-handed option both at the top and in the middle order as well. Suryakumar Yadav showed great form in the Australia ODIs and he will be a contender as well.
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The finisher’s role is expected to be performed by Hardik Pandya, who will also support the pace bowlers. He might be aided by Ravindra Jadeja, whose batting form is questionable, but his bowling and fielding bring a lot to the team.
On pitches that aid spinners, India might look to partner Jadeja with R Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav, giving themselves a variety of options to choose from. A left-arm orthodox spinner, a left-arm wrist spinner, and a right-arm off-spinner, this combination will keep the opposition batters on their toes.
But on the pitches that are conducive to seam bowling, R Ashwin might make way for Shardul Thakur to come in. As for the pace department, India has to choose from Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah.
COC predicted strongest India playing XI for World Cup 2023:
Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj