India and Sri Lanka will face each other at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday for their ODI World Cup 2023 match. India's rampant form in the tournament sees them on top of the points table with six wins in six matches and a victory on Thursday can assure them a spot in the top four. India have outplayed all their opponents in the tournament so far, registering convincing wins in all six matches.
After beating Australia in the opening match, they got the better of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, New Zealand and England in the following matches.
Skipper Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah are leading their charge from the front, picking up the most runs and most wickets, respectively, for the Men in Blue. Virat Kohli too has been among the top run-scorers, while Mohammed Shami, who played only two matches so far, has picked up nine wickets already.
In their last match, India squared off against defending champions England. The track in Lucknow wasn't best suited for batting, but a valiant effort from Rohit Sharma (87 off 101 balls) took India to 229/9 in 50 overs. In response, England were bowled out for only 129 runs, with Shami picking up four wickets and Bumrah returning with three wickets. India's 100-run win puts them a step closer in pursuit of their third ODI World Cup title.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, have had an underwhelming campaign so far. They have won only two matches out of six - beating Netherlands and England. In their last match, they were beaten comprehensively by Afghanistan, who were all over the 1996 champions with the bat and ball.
India and Sri Lanka famously played the ICC World Cup 2011 final at the same venue and the hosts will be looking to replicate those heroics.
Openers: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill
Rohit Sharma has been sensational at the top and his aggressive approach has been pivotal in giving India breathtaking starts in the powerplay. The Indian skipper has scored 398 runs in six matches at a stellar strike-rate of 119.16 in the tournament so far.
Shubman Gill, on the other hand, is the top run-scorer in ODIs this year, having scored 1,334 runs in 24 ODIs, including five centuries and six half-centuries. In the tournament, he has only scored one half-century against Bangladesh but given the form he is in, one can expect a big knock from him soon.
Middle order: Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav
The positive for the Indian middle order is that all three first-choice batters have registered big scores in the tournament so far. Virat Kohli, the leading run-scorer in ODI cricket among active cricketers right now, has scored one century and three fifties in six matches.
KL Rahul fell three runs short of a century against Australia and so far has registered 216 runs coming in at No. 4 and No. 5. Shreyas Iyer got off to a slow start in the tournament, but an unbeaten 53 against Pakistan saw him return to form at the right time. Suryakumar Yadav is coming off a top contribution against England, as his 49 helped India post a competitive total.
All-rounders: Ravindra Jadeja
India might go ahead with Ravindra Jadeja as the sole all-round option in this match. With Hardik Pandya injured, the Indian side had no other option but to play Suryakumar Yadav in the top half and pick Shami as a bowling option. Jadeja has picked up eight wickets in six matches and despite not being tested much with the bat, he came up with a clutch unbeaten 39 against New Zealand.
Bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami
Jasprit Bumrah is currently the leading wicket-taker in the tournament for India, with 14 wickets in six matches. His spell of 2/19 against Pakistan earned him the Player of the Match award and also picked up four wickets in the match against Afghanistan. Mohammed Shami, who played only two matches, is on fire with nine wickets, including a five-fer against New Zealand.
Mohammed Siraj, currently ranked No. 2 in the ICC ODI rankings for bowlers, picked up only six wicket in the six matches of the tournament. However, he got two vital breakthroughs against Pakistan and bowled well against New Zealand as well. Kuldeep Yadav is the other attacking spin option for Rohit Sharma, who has returned with 10 wickets in the tournament so far.
India's Predicted Playing XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj