 "Champions Trophy 2025: Why Devdutt Padikkal makes solid case for getting included in India's ODI squad")
After unveiling the squad for the T20I series against England last week , the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee is yet to make an announcement regarding the squads for India’s upcoming One-Day International assignments. After the T20Is against England, India face Jos Buttler's men in three 50-over matches before turning their attention towards the ICC Champions Trophy.
With the under-fire Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli still active in ODIs after retiring from T20Is last year , and both stalwarts eager to regain their form after a horrid run in Tests in recent months, as well as the fact that the next T20 World Cup is more than a year away, the spotlight will understandably be fixed on the 50-over format for now.
There are several talking points as far as India’s ODI outfit is concerned. In the bowling department, India have suffered a body blow in the form of a back injury to senior pacer Jasprit Bumrah, which has likely ruled him out until the first week of March. Mohammed Shami, however, is fit and raring to have his first crack at international cricket in over a year, and could lead the attack in the absence of his long-time new-ball partner.
As for the batting department, Rohit and Kohli remain automatic selections and will continue to bat at No 1 and No 3 respectively, with the former’s opening partner in other formats Yashasvi Jaiswal likely to make his ODI debut next month. Reports also suggest KL Rahul will retain his place in the ODI squad , including for the Champions Trophy and Rishabh Pant will remain the wicketkeeper-batter in the format after being overlooked for the T20I series in favour of Sanju Samson .
Will Padikkal’s Vijay Hazare heroics land him a spot in India’s Champions Trophy squad?
Among the names being discussed for the ODI assignments , Karnataka batter Devdutt Padikkal doesn’t rank that high. The 24-year-old, after all, did not make much of an impact in the red-ball fixtures in recent months, collecting just one half-century in the format – during the unofficial Test between India A and Australia A in Mackay.
Padikkal had played the opening Test against Australia in Perth as a replacement for the injured Shubman Gill, scoring 0 and 25 and was dropped once Gill recover from his thumb injury.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter, however, has been making heads turn in the Vijay Hazare Trophy recently, smashing 102 and 86 for Karnataka against Baroda and Haryana respectively, helping the four-time champions storm into the final of the 2024-25 edition.
Not only has Padikkal collected back-to-back Player of the Match awards, he has also achieved an incredible feat – that of the highest batting average in List A cricket among cricketers with a minimum of 2,000 runs. He went past the 2,000-run mark during his innings of 86 that knocked defending champions Haryana out in the semi-finals.
Placing them to perfection ✨
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) January 16, 2025
Transitioning seamlessly from red ball to white ball format 🔄
The importance of singles 🏃♂️#VijayHazareTrophy Semi Final 1 Player of the Match Devdutt Padikkal shares his 50-over success mantra 🏆 - by @jigsactin @devdpd07 | #HARvKAR pic.twitter.com/RfYk8fv7I6
Padikkal currently occupies the top spot ahead of India wicketkeeper-batter Ruturaj Gaikwad (58.16) as well as legendary names such as Michael Bevan (57.86), Virat Kohli (57.05) and AB de Villiers (53.47).
With numbers like these, it will be difficult for Agarkar and company as well as the team management to ignore Padikkal as far as picking their squad for the upcoming 50-over fixtures is concerned, no matter how stacked India is with batting talent in the format.
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