As predicted in these pages before the three-match ODI series began, Rohit Sharma’s Indian team swept England 3-0 to finish off their ICC Champions Trophy preparations on a high. A few issues remain but based on India’s 3-0 whitewash of a rather befuddled, and at times apparently disinterested England, things look as good as can be for India before they land in Dubai on February 15.
Before a ball was bowled in this series against England, there were widespread concerns and valid questions. How would Rohit and Virat Kohli fare after an extended lean run in red-ball cricket? Would Mohammed Shami’s body hold up on return to the 50-over format? Could Shubman Gill shed his Test struggles and resume doing spectacular things in ODI cricket? Would Kuldeep Yadav, back from a prolonged injury layoff, bowl with the same bite? There were eyes on the uncapped pair of Harshit Rana and Varun Chakravarthy, given the impending decision on Jasprit Bumrah’s fitness.
After these three ODIs – which India won by four wickets (twice) and 142 runs – fans of the Indian cricket team may not be satiated, but there are positives from the series win which were India’s first ODIs since August 2024.
Gill, the heir apparent to Kohli when it comes to ODI cricket, was named Player of the Series for scoring 259 runs at an average of 86.33 and a strike-rate of 103.60 Gill ended the series with 112, his seventh ODI century, but truth be told he could easily have finished with nine, such was his form against England. In Nagpur, Gill was out for 87 with a century, as well as the finish line, within striking distance. In Cuttack, he was cut off on 60 from 52 balls by a terrific yorker from Jamie Overton. And in Ahmedabad, where he now has centuries in all three formats apart from in the IPL, Gill looked set for a double-century before he played an ambitious slog to Adil Rashid and was bowled for 112.
Such imperious form sends Gill into his first Champions Trophy in hot form, and with a potential blockbuster campaign ahead.
Rohit averaged 6.20 in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia and since India resumed playing Test cricket in September, the skipper averages 10.93. He recently played his first Ranji Trophy match for Mumbai in nine years and made 31 runs in two innings. He failed in the first and third ODIs, but in Cuttack Rohit scored 119 off 90 balls, with 12 fours and seven sixes, to somewhat dose concerns over his ODI abilities.
Kohli – who made headlines when he was bowled for 6 in his domestic comeback for Delhi after 12 seasons – missed the Nagpur match with a sore knee, managed just five runs in Cuttack, and then made 52 off 55 deliveries in Ahmedabad. Far from a bumper series for India’s biggest player but getting a half-century in the last ODI does send Kohli to the UAE with some touch. The concern is that both times he was out to his nemesis, Rashid, which might hint at more struggles in Dubai.
It is unfathomable that India had initially dropped Shreyas Iyer for the first ODI, instead handing a maiden cap to Yashasvi Jaiswal. Iyer did play that match eventually after Kohli pulled up sore, and India’s No 4 played an innings that said it all: do not think of dropping me again. Iyer smacked 59 off 36 balls in Nagpur, then made 44 off 47 in Cuttack and finally 78 off 64 in Ahmedabad.
The man picked to bat after Iyer in these three ODIs, KL Rahul, only got that chance once. In the first two games, owing to the team’s obsession with the right-left combination, Axar Patel was sent out at No 5 and scored 52 and 41*. In those two matches, Rahul looked at odds and made scores of 2 and 10. In Ahmedabad, promoted to No 5, he contributed a fluent 40 off 29 deliveries. Getting all three games ahead of Rishabh Pant is confirmation that the Indian team will play Rahul in the Champions Trophy as wicketkeeper, and while his glovework was overall tidy, another under-par series with the bat has not alleviated doubts over Rahul’s temperament in ODIs.
Coming to the bowling, the big positive was the wicket-taking form of Ravindra Jadeja who retired from T20Is and had not played a white-ball game since June. Given the presence of white-ball regulars Axar and Washington Sundar, you wondered if Jadeja could get game time. He played in Nagpur and Cuttack and was superb with his left-arm spin, claiming six wickets at an economy of 3.21. Signs are that Jadeja will be India’s No 1 spinner in Dubai.
The man who previously owned that tag, Kuldeep, made his ODI comeback in this series having been sidelined since October. He had surgery for a hernia and played one Ranji Trophy match recently, in which bowled 31 overs. Kuldeep played the first and third ODIs against England and took two wickets. While his economy was a decent 5.15, Kuldeep’s bowling lacked the bite and dip associated with him and one cannot shake the feeling that come the Champion Trophy, he might get bumped out by Chakravarthy who is one ODI old.
Regarding Shami, who did not play for India from the ODI World Cup final on November 19, 2023, until the recent T20I series, the concerns were whether his body could hold up in these 50-over games. Shami was given two matches and bowled 15.5 overs, from which he took two wickets at an average of 52 while conceding runs at an economy of 6.56. He took the new ball each time and was good, sometimes beating the bat and bowling some potent deliveries. But Shami’s pace was down, expectedly, and he did not look threatening as England’s innings progressed.
That left Rana, who debuted in Nagpur and played all three ODIs, to try and unsettle the opposition. He came back well from conceding 26 runs in an over on debut to take 3/53 and finished the series as India’s joint highest wicket-taker with six at 24.33 apiece and at economy rate of 6.95. Rana is quick, can bowl a mean bouncer – he dismissed Harry Brook three out of three times – but can get carried away at times. Still, he looks set for gametime in the UAE.
All in all, almost all boxes were ticked by India during this 3-0 sweep. Tougher conditions and opponents await them at the Champions Trophy, but this team looks capable of making the semi-finals in Dubai.
