Speculation over the future of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli may continue, though it could be more of a surprise if the duo aren’t a part of the upcoming Champions Trophy.
The two superstars aside, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel will certainly be looking to shape a 15-member squad that gives India the best chance of going the distance in the ICC event beginning on February 19.
Although a different format, success in the Champions Trophy should pacify India after the scars and bruises of the Test series in Australia.
The five T20Is and three ODIs at home against England beginning on January 22 would ideally have hinted at India’s prospective Champions Trophy squad. But protocol-wise, the squad before an ICC tournament has to be announced a month before the competition begins, with a grace period of two to three days. This means India will have to announce their provisional squad by January 19, three days before the start of the England white-ball games.
The squads for the England matches, though, are expected to be announced by the end of this week. As for the Champions Trophy, it shouldn’t be too surprising if the focus is on maintaining the core group of the 2023 ODI World Cup as much as possible.
"It seems the tried and tested 2023 World Cup team (which finished runners-up) will more or less be named. You never know, the Champions Trophy squad too could be discussed when the teams for the England games get finalised," a BCCI official told The Telegraph on Tuesday.
"Bowling-wise, if Jasprit Bumrah's back issue subsides and he goes on to be available for the ICC meet, the quicks joining him will most likely be Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami and Arshdeep Singh. It seems they're trying to get Shami back into the team. His performance will be monitored in Bengal's Vijay Hazare pre-quarter final clash against Haryana (in Baroda on Thursday).
"As for Arshdeep, the angles he can create being a left-arm quick and his consistency in the white-ball formats gives him a fair chance. In Vijay Hazare too, he has done well (17 wickets from six games). To talk of the spinners, Kuldeep (Yadav) is fit and has started bowling, so he could be there for the England ODIs too. So will Axar Patel and Washington Sundar, now that (Ravichandran) Ashwin has retired," the official said.
Among the batsmen, Shreyas Iyer — among India's leading run-scorers in the 2023 ODI World Cup — looks set for a comeback. The Mumbai captain's current form has been impressive. So far in five appearances in the Vijay Hazare, Shreyas has two unbeaten centuries.
All-rounder Hardik Pandya, having featured in the recent domestic limited-overs games for Baroda, too will find a berth. "If one's smart enough, Hardik can be rested for the England T20Is to keep him fresh for Champions Trophy. You do have an alternative in the form of Nitish Kumar Reddy for the T20Is," the Board official said.