No Ashwin; Shami, Umesh return for 1st 3 ODIs against Australia

IND 16-member squad: Kohli(C),Rohit, Shikhar,Rahul,Pandey,Jadhav, Rahane, MSD,Hardik, Axar, Kuldeep, Chahal, Bumrah, Bhuvi, Umesh, Shami

Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal was equally good and will have another opportunity to make his mark.

Young Shardul Thakur, who played 2 ODIs against Sri Lanka has been excluded.

And so did Umesh Yadav. Both of them were rested from the Sri Lanka limited overs series.

There is some change in the seam department also. Mohammed Shami has made a comeback into the side.

Chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav will give Chahal and Akshar a run for their money for a place in the side.

Bhuvnehswar Kumar, who returned with his career best figures (5/42) in the fifth and final ODI will take the new ball for India.

He will be partnered by Jasprit Bumrah, who became the first fast bowler to take 15 wickets in bilateral series of more than 3 matches in Sri Lanka.

The selection committee has allowed Ravichandran Ashwin to complete his four-match stint with English County side Worcestershire and therefore has been kept out of the Indian limited overs side for the second consecutive time.

The main surprise in store is in the spin department of the Indian team, where the No. 1 spinner in Tests Ravindra Jadeja has been rested again.

The spin department will be lead by Akshar Patel, who made a strong comeback to the Indian set-up in the Sri Lanka series by picking up 6 wickets in 4 matches.

India’s new find all-rounder Hardik Pandya is expected to play a key role against Australia.

Rohit Sharma, who was in scintillating form in the ODI series against Sri Lanka, scoring two centuries will open the batting against Australia also.

Shikhar Dhawan, who was unavailable for the fifth ODI and the one-off T20I against Sri Lanka because of his mother’s illness, is back and will open the batting with Rohit.

The selection dilemma does not end with Rahul. There is Ajinkya Rahane, who was the highest scorer of the West Indies series but lost out his place in the side when Dhawan, Rohit made a comeback. He played only one ODI against Sri Lanka and could only manage 5 runs.

The rejuvenated MS Dhoni, who was not even dismissed once in the entire Sri Lanka will keep wickets for India.

Kedar Jadhav will be a key man in India’s middle order. With his ability to bowl off spin; he becomes a valuable asset to the team. (Photo: BCCI)

KL Rahul is considered to be the man for all formats and has been named in the squad expectedly. However, there are clouds over his batting order. He could not prove himself at No.4, where Manish Pandey scored two vital fifties and with Rohit and Dhawan batting beautifully against the new ball, he becomes the third opener.

Manish Pandey has grabbed his opportunities with both hands against Sri Lanka in the latter part of the ODIs as well as the one-off T20I. He scored two half-centuries in 3 matches. The right-hander would look to seal the No. 4 spot, which still has a lot of takers.

Fresh from a 9-0 rout of Sri Lanka, captain Virat Kohli would look to continue the momentum.

India will play a 5-match ODI series followed by three T20s against Australia.

The MSK Prasad-led selection committee on Sunday announced a 16-member Indian squad for first 3 ODIs against Australia slated to begin from September 17.