India vs West Indies, Ist ODI Preview: Rohit Sharma era begins at Ahmedabad

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Ahmedabad, February 5: The Rohit Sharma-era of leadership is here with the right-handed batter getting ready to don the captaincy hat in the upcoming ODI series against West Indies, beginning Sunday (February 6).

Team India are set to play three ODIs at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad from February 6 followed by the T20I series at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata from February 16.

Rohit was supposed to lead the side in the ODIs against South Africa, but a hamstring issue ruled him out.

However, he has regained fitness and is ready to lead the Men in Blue.

When India takes the field on Sunday, it will become the first international team to play 1000 ODIs.

Currently, at 999 matches, India accounts for 518 wins and 431 losses. The Men in Blue had played their 500th match in 2002 and two decades later, the side will now reach the milestone of playing 1000 ODIs.

On Thursday, the BCCI had confirmed that Shreyas Iyer, Shikhar Dhawan and Ruturaj Gaikwad tested positive for COVID-19 and hence will miss the ODI series.

Mayank was drafted into the squad and he could be seen opening the batting alongside Rohit Sharma.

Kuldeep is also back in the squad and it would be interesting to see whether the team management gives him a chance alongside Yuzvendra Chahal in the playing XI.

Deepak Chahar, Prasidh Krishna and Avesh Khan are also in the squad and it would be nice to see these three being given games consistently.

Batting against South Africa left a lot to be desired and it would be nice to see a different approach against West Indies and one would expect the batters play their natural game.

Virat Kohli has not scored a century since November 2019 and the entire country is waiting for the right-handed batter get to the three-figure mark as soon as possible.

Talking about West Indies, the side from the Caribbean is fresh from the T20I series win against England and it would be interesting to see how Kieron Pollard leads the side against the Men in Blue.

India ODI squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Mayank Agarwal, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, KL Rahul (available for 2nd ODI), Rishabh Pant, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan.

West Indies squad: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Kemar Roach, Nkrumah Bonner, Brandon King, Fabien Allen, Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shephard, Odean Smith, Hayden Walsh Jr.