Rohit Sharma is keen to play the ODI World Cup next year.
Having retired from T20Is and Tests in the 2024-25 season, Rohit Sharma remain active for India only in ODIs. He dominated the 50-over format last year, finishing as India’s second highest run-getter and earning the Player-of-the-Series award on the tour of Australia.
While Rohit registered low scores of 26, 24 and 11 in India’s last ODI assignment against New Zealand, former India leg-spinner Piyush Chawla backed the veteran opener to hit big hundreds in the three-match ODI series versus Afghanistan, slated to begin on June 13 in Dharamsala.
“When you are playing just one format for India, you want to spend as much time at the crease as possible because, no matter how much net practice or match simulation you do, an international match, regardless of the opposition, is a different challenge.
“So, as a batter, you want to score big runs and, if he is completely fit, he would want to score those big hundreds that everyone has come to expect from him. Because more than those quick 40s and 50s, the team would want those innings of 120-130 runs off 100 deliveries from Rohit,” said Chawla on JioHotstar.
Chawla highlighted young Delhi pacer Prince Yadav as a top contender to make his international debut during the Afghanistan ODI series.
“All three of Gurnoor, Harsh Dubey, and Prince Yadav might get an opportunity during the series as an audition, especially if India win the first two games.
“But I see Prince Yadav as the strongest contender to get a chance among them. Not just in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, even in the IPL, under pressure, he executed his plans, bowled those yorkers consistently, and took wickets. So, my eyes will definitely be on him,” he remarked.
When asked who fills the No. 3 slot in Virat Kohli’s absence and the bowling combination with no Hardik Pandya around, Chawla threw his weight behind Yashasvi Jaiswal, Washington Sundar, and Kuldeep Yadav to fill those vacancies.
“Yashasvi Jaiswal hasn’t done anything wrong. In the last ODI he played, he scored a century against South Africa. But given the current form, I feel Ishan Kishan would get the nod. And when you travel for a World Cup, you need a backup wicketkeeper, so he fits both those roles, a backup opener, and a backup keeper.
“Among the spinners, I would go with Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav. Washington helps extend the batting until No. 8, and Kuldeep will take care of the middle overs.
“If you look at his ODI numbers, not many bowlers are even close to him. Among the pacers, I would like Arshdeep to get some game time, a bowler who can pick up early wickets, along with Prasidh Krishna,” Chawla stated.
Piyush Chawla reckons Afghanistan’s experienced spin attack, featuring Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi, will be the decisive factor in the ODI series.
“Whenever you talk about Afghanistan, the focus is on their spinners, especially in white-ball cricket. Yes, the ones playing Test cricket may lack international experience, but that’s not the case in limited-overs cricket.
“You will have Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi operating in the middle overs. And we know that Indian batters in the middle order like to show their intent against spin, so it will be a fascinating battle. That phase of the game will play an important role in determining the outcome,” he concluded.