Former pacer Ashish Nehra believes India head coach Gautam Gambhir got his strategy wrong by getting the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli play in the ongoing ODI series against Sri Lanka.

According to Nehra, the two stalwarts were not required for the contest and India should have introduced fresh faces in the 50-over set-up.

His comments despite India trailing 0-1 in the three-ODI series after two games. While the series opener ended in a tie, the visitors suffered a comprehensive 32-run defeat in the second match.

With India facing a must-win situation in the third ODI to level the series, it is highly unlikely that Rohit and Kohli will be given a rest. Hence, the likes of Rishabh Pant, Khaleel Ahmed, Riyan Parag, and Harshit Rana will continue to warm the bench.

“The next series India play is 2-3 months later, a rare thing for us. So for players like Rohit and Kohli...I feel there was a better chance of giving opportunities to other players during this series,” Nehra said on Sony Sports.

“I know Gambhir is a new coach, and he wants to spend some time with the experienced players, but it isn't like he doesn't know the two of them. He is not a foreign coach who wants to get his equation right with Kohli and Rohit. So it was a good opportunity for him to try out the new players, and Rohit and Kohli could play when the home season begins. I'm not saying it is a wrong approach, but it could have been one of the strategies in this series,” he added.

According to reports, Rohit and Kohli were not supposed to feature in this ODI series initially but on Gambhir's insistence, both of them cut short their break and arrived in Colombo.

The move only seemed logical from Gambhir's point of view, who wanted to get a better view of the possible line-up India could have for the Champions Trophy next year given that the team will only play one other series in the format, in February 2025, against England at home.