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India captain Rohit Sharma has pinpointed the rigours of excessive travelling as a primary reason for the spate of injuries plaguing several teams in the lead-up to the ODI World Cup 2023. Notable teams like Sri Lanka, Australia, and New Zealand are grappling with fitness concerns for key players as the tournament looms.
India, too, is not immune to this predicament. The team is currently navigating through injuries to pivotal players Axar Patel and Shreyas Iyer. Their fitness will be crucial for India's campaign in the World Cup.
During the announcement of the Indian squad for the upcoming three-match series against Australia, Sharma emphasised the strategic rotation of the team to ensure players remain in peak condition for the World Cup.
"Our endeavour is to give everyone a chance. If we only play 11 through the year, then you can't create bench strength. You can see that some other teams are facing injury problems because it also involves a lot of travelling and we have to play 11 matches and crisscross the country," Rohit elaborated on the challenges of the World Cup's demanding schedule.
He further added, "So, we will have a lot of travelling and a lot of matches. We want to make sure that some of the guys sitting out have enough confidence by playing a few games and not like suddenly they are thrown in."
In a notable selection decision, Ravichandran Ashwin has been included in the final ODI series leading up to the World Cup. This comes after his omission from the Asia Cup and the preliminary ODI World Cup squad. Sharma revealed that he had maintained communication with Ashwin, emphasising the need for players to be perpetually prepared.
"Eventually, players need to be ready and anyone can be called at any time. You need to remain strong and sportspersons need to be ready. If you are summoned, you need to perform as we have seen for years, chances do come. Bench strength is important and we always try to find a chance to give people chance," Sharma underscored, highlighting the importance of a robust reserve of players.
India Squad for first two ODIs vs Australia
KL Rahul (C & WK), Ravindra Jadeja (Vice-captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar, R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
Squad for the 3rd ODI vs Australia
Rohit Sharma (C), Hardik Pandya, (Vice-captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel*, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj
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