India's stand-in skipper KL Rahul will be looking to get some valuable batting time as the Men in Blue are expected to reset their goals and challenge themselves in the final two ODIs against Zimbabwe. The gulf between the two teams was clear in the first ODI, where India chased down a meagre target of 190 runs without losing their wicket, and in the final two games, Rahul will hope to find his batting touch after missing the last three series for India because of injuries.
Toss will play an important role, and India should look to bat on a bowling pitch with a bouncy track, and sufficient nip in the air should pose a challenge for the batters. After the first match, Deepak Chahar pointed out that there is little help for the bowlers during the second session and the only time that there's some challenge for the batters is the first hour of the match.
A morning session with deliveries moving on both sides, albeit with a gentle pace, would be a decent enough extended net session for Rahul. While 'Captain Rahul' showed his elder statesman-like qualities by letting Shikhar Dhawan and Shubman Gill open in the first game, the 'Batter Rahul' also needs to get his priorities right before the Asia Cup. He needs to quickly adapt to Team India's "attack at all costs from the onset" philosophy and that can't just happen overnight.
Against a side like Zimbabwe, which is not good enough to even challenge a top Indian domestic side, Rahul would get an ideal opportunity to experiment with his batting.
For acting head coach VVS Laxman, as much as he would like to experiment, he wouldn't mind winning the series first before giving some of the reserves a chance to test themselves. Therefore a left-right combination of Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul won't be a bad option in case Shikhar Dhawan's forearm injury sustained towards the end of the match turns out to be serious.
Winning the series is important but creating different situations and testing the game awareness of the younger lot in pressure cooker scenarios should be on the checklist.
Deepak Chahar bowling seven overs at one stretch is a good sign and indicator that he is gradually building up his workload. Prasidh Krishna would like to try a few more variations than his back-of-the-length stuff while Mohammed Siraj won't mind a few more wickets.
Just like batting in the morning could be a challenge for Rahul and Co. bowling in the warm afternoon conditions with no lateral movement on offer would test the character of pacers and their improvisation skills.
Teams
India
KL Rahul (C), Shikhar Dhawan (VC), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Ishan Kishan (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Prasidh Krishna, Mohd Siraj, Deepak Chahar, Shahbaz Ahmed.
Zimbabwe
Regis Chakabva (C), Ryan Burl, Tanaka Chivanga, Bradley Evans , Luke Jongwe , Innocent Kaia, Takudzwanashe Kaitano , Clive Madande, Wessly Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, John Masara, Tony Munyonga , Richard Ngarava , Victor Nyauchi , Sikandar Raza , Milton Shumba, Donald Tiripano.
