India's Likely Playing XI vs England, 1st ODI: Gautam Gambhir Set To Bench Top-Order Star?
After a debacle in the five-match T20I series, Team India will look for some redemption in the ODI series against England, beginning on Tuesday in Birmingham.
After a debacle in the five-match T20I series, Team India will look for some redemption in the ODI series against England, beginning on Tuesday in Birmingham. As Shubman Gill returns to lead the visitors, the series also marks the comeback of senior stars Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. While Rohit featured in the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan, Kohli missed it due to a hamstring injury sustained during the IPL 2026 final. With the 2027 World Cup on the horizon, both teams will be eager to start the series on a winning note.
In the T20I series against Ireland and England, Team India suffered humiliating clean sweeps, giving Shreyas Iyer a forgettable start to his captaincy tenure. However, one issue remained common in both series - India's batting collapses.
Keeping those shortcomings in mind, India are likely to field a batting-heavy playing XI in the first ODI of the three-match series in Birmingham.
Rohit and Gill are expected to open the innings after the selectors dropped Yashasvi Jaiswal from the squad to accommodate the returning Kohli. Although Jaiswal enjoyed a productive outing with the bat against Afghanistan, the selection committee has decided to persist with the experienced opening pair of Rohit and Gill.
With Kohli and Iyer likely to bat at No. 3 and No. 4 respectively, KL Rahul is expected to don the wicketkeeping gloves and slot in at No. 5. While Ishan Kishan, who has been one of India's key top-order batters in T20Is, remains another wicketkeeping option, the visitors are likely to back Rahul for the role.
As Hardik Pandya and Nitish Kumar Reddy continue their recovery from injuries, Team India are short of a genuine pace-bowling all-rounder. For the opening match, the visitors are expected to rely on Axar Patel, Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav to handle the spin department.
In the pace attack, Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh are expected to lead the way, alongside Gurnoor Brar, who impressed many with his excellent performances during the ODI series against Afghanistan.
India's Predicted XI: Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Gurnoor Brar, Jasprit Bumrah.
India Cricket Team
England Cricket Team
Virat Kohli
Rohit Sharma