India Predicted XI For 3rd ODI vs Australia: Kuldeep Yadav To Play; No Place For Harshit Rana?

India look to avoid a whitewash as the Shubman Gill-led side take on Australia in the third ODI encounter in Sydney on Saturday. The visitors have lost both of the matches in the series till now - a 7-wicket (DLS) loss in Perth followed by a narrow 2-wicket in Adelaide. Rohit Sharma regained his form in Adelaide as he scored a gritty 73 after failing to score big in Perth. However, the focus will be on Virat Kohli who has not scored a single run in the series till now. The star India batter was dismissed for a duck on both occasions and the match on Saturday provides him with a perfect chance to score big.

While India have already lost the ODI series, it is unlikely that they will make massive changes to the playing XI. Rohit is expected to open the innings along with Shubman Gill, with Virat Kohli batting at No. 3.

Shreyas Iyer will be expected to continue his good run at No. 4 with KL Rahul playing as the wicket-keeper. Coming to all-rounders, Axar Patel and Nitish Kumar Reddy are expected to retain their spots.

However, Washington Sundar is expected to make way for Kuldeep Yadav - the only specialised spinner in the India squad. There has been a lot of criticism over Kuldeep's absence in the first two matches and it is highly likely that he will be given a chance in Sydney.

In the bowling department, Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh are expected to feature in the match but question marks remain over the third pacer slot. While Harshit Rana did perform well in the previous match, India can end up giving Prasidh Krishna a chance.

India's predicted XI for 3rd ODI against Australia: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (C), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Shreyas Iyer (VC), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana/Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav.

Topics mentioned in this article

Harshit Rana Kuldeep Yadav Rohit Sharma Virat Kohli Australia Cricket Team India Cricket Team Australia vs India 2025 Cricket