India’s tour of Australia commences with the first of the three-ODI series in Sydney on Friday, November 27. Wisden India writers Manoj Narayan, Aadya Sharma, Sankalp Srivastava and Roshan Gede pick their India XI’s to face Australia in the series opener.

BCCI named a 16-strong squad for the ODI series: while Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah seem to be straightforward picks in the XI, there is a lot of competition for the remaining spots, the most important one possibly being the vacant opening slot in Rohit Sharma’s absence.

First-choice wicketkeeper KL Rahul’s batting position will play a deciding role; Mayank Agarwal and Manish Pandey’s possible selections depend on it, as does that of Sanju Samson, the other wicketkeeper. The choice between frontline spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, the choice for India’s third quick bowler and the dilemma to pick Ravindra Jadeja or Hardik Pandya, or both, are the other major talking points.

The four Wisden India writers went through all the aforementioned permutations and combinations to come up with their respective India XIs for the first Australia ODI.

Manoj Narayan, Wisden India editor

Shikhar Dhawan
KL Rahul
Virat Kohli (c)
Shreyas Iyer
Sanju Samson (wk)
Hardik Pandya
Ravindra Jadeja
Navdeep Saini
Mohammed Shami
Yuzvendra Chahal
Jasprit Bumrah

A slightly left-field XI this, in which Samson has been tipped to make his ODI debut. Samson was impressive in the IPL, and with no Rishabh Pant in the squad, the Rajasthan Royals star needs to get into the XI as India can’t rely on the part-time wicketkeeping skills of Rahul for too long. I’ve gone with Rahul, the most versatile batsman in the side, as the second opener alongside Dhawan – as much as I’d like to see Mayank Agarwal get another opportunity, the first match on tour is about getting a win, and Rahul has excelled in this role before.

The XI is fairly straightforward that apart – Iyer continues at No.4, having impressed in the role in New Zealand, with Pandya and Jadeja offering the potential for explosiveness. A pace attack of Bumrah, Shami and Saini should also sizzle, while Chahal will most likely lead things from the spin front, along with Jadeja. Kuldeep Yadav didn’t have the best IPL, and on the basis of form, he sits out.

Aadya Sharma, Wisden India staff writer

KL Rahul (wk)
Shikhar Dhawan
Virat Kohli (c)
Shreyas Iyer
Manish Pandey
Hardik Pandya
Ravindra Jadeja
Navdeep Saini
Mohammed Shami
Yuzvendra Chahal
Jasprit Bumrah

There might be some debate over KL Rahul’s position and the possibility of bringing in Mayank Agarwal alongside Dhawan, but I’d rather keep Rahul at the top of the order, where he gets time to settle and dictate his tempo. Kohli and Iyer follow, with the latter assuming the role at four after a successful series against New Zealand and a good IPL season. Keeping Rahul at the top gives the opportunity to squeeze in an extra batsman, where Pandey, a reasonably good floater, gets the nod ahead of Sanju Samson, followed by all-rounders Pandya and Jadeja.

The bowling is fairly straightforward: Bumrah and Shami, along with Chahal, are easy picks, while Navdeep Saini, who impressed with his speeds in the IPL, my third seamer ahead of Shardul Thakur. Kuldeep Yadav is unlucky to miss out, based on his poor IPL form.

Sneak peek into the new India ODI kit? 🤔

What are your first impressions of this throwback jersey?

📸: Shikhar Dhawan/Instagram pic.twitter.com/FIk86f4sHD

— Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) November 24, 2020

Roshan Gede, Wisden India staff writer

Mayank Agarwal
Shikhar Dhawan
Virat Kohli (c)
Shreyas Iyer
KL Rahul (wk)
Manish Pandey
Ravindra Jadeja
Mohammed Shami
Navdeep Saini
Jasprit Bumrah
Yuzvendra Chahal

Mayank Agarwal’s glorious run of form in Tests and the recently concluded IPL should be good enough to guarantee him the opener’s slot in Rohit Sharma’s absence. KL Rahul continues to bat in the middle-order for me given his ability to play situations while Shreyas Iyer, who starred alongside Rahul during the ODI series loss to New Zealand earlier this year, keeps his position at four.

India need a solid number six with a well-defined role and Manish Pandey, with his skills and experience, could just be the man. The memories of his brilliant last outing in Sydney in 2016 – an 81-ball-104 to help India chase down 331 – would only add to the confidence. With uncertainty over Hardik Pandya’s bowling, I’ve gone with Jadeja as the all-rounder as his outstanding batting form makes him a reliable No.7 too. Shami and Bumrah lead the fast-bowling attack to go with the raw pace of Saini, while Chahal’s recent form and Kuldeep’s lack of it makes the former my XI’s frontline spinner.

The No.4 spot has been a long-standing problem area for 🇮🇳 in ODIs.

Here we take a look at the options they have for #INDvAUS.

Who do you think should bat at two drop?https://t.co/CUOiKqrbxN

— Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) November 25, 2020

Sankalp Srivastava, Wisden India staff writer

Shikhar Dhawan
Mayank Agarwal
Virat Kohli (c)
Shreyas Iyer
KL Rahul (wk)
Hardik Pandya
Ravindra Jadeja
Mohammed Shami
Navdeep Saini
Yuzvendra Chahal
Jasprit Bumrah

I’d be tempted to give Mayank Agarwal a go in the ODI series, especially after a brilliant IPL where he scored runs at a much quicker pace than he has before, adding to his ability to take a composed approach if things go awry for the side. Shreyas Iyer has more or less solved the No.4 problem for the Indian team which has plagued them for long, after his strong showing in New Zealand earlier this year. While I do believe that Rahul’s potential can be fully unlocked if he’s given a long rope at the top of the order, he is anyway likely to be given a spot in the middle order once Rohit Sharma returns for future series. Rahul’s numbers at No.5 aren’t bad too – 291 runs at 72.75 and a strike-rate of 118.77. He’s scored a hundred from that position too.

Even though Pandya might not be fit enough to bowl, he’s still one of the best hitters in white-ball cricket and can finish the innings with a flourish. The fact that Ravindra Jadeja, one of the two spinners in this team, batted like a dream in the IPL is a bonus too. Chahal should be over Kuldeep purely based on their respective recent forms and Navdeep Saini to be the third pacer for he could breathe fire in Australian conditions with his raw pace. Dhawan, Kohli, Shami and Bumrah pick themselves.