The 2023 World Cup is less than two months away, but India continue to fret over the fitness of some first-choice players. The Asia Cup is where they would ideally like to settle in with the final combination that they want for the World Cup, but it will not be a cakewalk.

What is the status of KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, and Rishabh Pant?

Rahul, Iyer, and Pant have been India’s best ODI middle-order batters since the last World Cup, but all three have been down with injuries and there have been conflicting reports about the current status of their fitness. India have tried out several players in their absence, but their returns have not matched those of the trio yet.

While Pant unlikely for the World Cup, let alone for the Asia Cup, Rahul and Iyer are in a race against time to be fit for the Asia Cup. India will want them back as soon as possible so that they get enough game time before the World Cup.

Should India continue with their experiments?

In the ODI series in the West Indies, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli sat out in the last two ODIs after pushing themselves down the order in the first. Suryakumar Yadav played once at No.3 and twice at No.6; Sanju Samson was moved around in the middle order; and Ruturaj Gaikwad got a game, as did Axar Patel, who batted as high as No.4.

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Rahul Dravid said that India were looking to find answers to certain questions, for which they needed to give the players game time and experiment. Whether they continue with the same policy in the Asia Cup or not, will be interesting to see.

On one hand, the management will want as many of the first-choice players settled into designated roles before the World Cup as possible; on the other, they will want to continue providing opportunities to backup players to keep them prepared if and when their chance comes at the big stage.

Sanju Samson or Suryakumar Yadav?

India have invested heavily in Suryakumar Yadav the ODI batter, but he has failed to deliver so far. After 24 innings, he averages 24.3 with a strike rate of 101. Samson, on the other hand, has an ODI average of 55.7 and a strike rate of 104 from 12 innings.

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In the West Indies series, Suryakumar batted in all three games and had a highest score of 35, while Samson scored a 41-ball 51 in one of his two outings. Samson has rarely got consistent runs with the Indian XI, which has perhaps made him go the extra mile, as was evident during his half-century where he maxed out on risk and hit two sixes off his first four balls.

The Asia Cup will be a good opportunity for India to make a call between the two and give whoever they choose the entire tournament to be prepared for a World Cup spot.

What’s up with Yuzvendra Chahal?

Chahal has had a peculiar career, especially since the 2019 ODI World Cup. In that tournament, he took 12 wickets in eight innings at an economy rate of 5.97. Since then, he has played a lot of bilateral white-ball series in both formats, but hasn’t played a single fixture across the 2021 and 2022 T20 World Cups. After not being picked in 2021, he did not play a single game in 2022.

As the 2023 World Cup approaches, things look unclear yet again. Chahal last played an ODI in January, and while he was in the squad for the West Indies series, he didn’t get to play a single game. Since last year, he has featured in only 16 out of the 36 ODIs India have played.

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With Kuldeep Yadav’s emphatic return to form, India may feel that they do not need another wrist-spinner, especially as Chahal is not the greatest batter or fielder. That may pave the door once again for R Ashwin – not only because he bowls off-breaks but also for the batting cushion down the order. If India are thinking about going down that path, the Asia Cup would be the right time to start the journey.

Batting depth or bowling quality?

The perennial question that has haunted India in white-ball cricket: with a long tail, should they pick a bowler who can bat (Shardul Thakur or Axar Patel) or the four best bowlers?

Thakur has performed consistently with the ball and has, in fact, been the highest wicket-taker for India in ODIs since the last World Cup. If India do pick him in the XI, they will have to leave out both Mohammed Shami and Prasidh Krishna (if Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj take the two seamers’ spots), along with Kuldeep. India have to make this tactical decision and commit to it during the Asia Cup.