India vs Australia: Shubman Gill, Shardul Thakur rested for 3rd ODI; Axar Patel ruled out

A dominant India won the second ODI against Australia in Indore and have sealed the 3-match ODI series. After this match, the selectors have rested Shubman Gill and Shardul Thakur for the upcoming final ODI against Australia in Rajkot. Spin-bowling all-rounder Axar Patel, additionally, has been ruled out of the final one-dayer after failing to recover from an injury that he picked up recently. Both Gill and Thakur will now rejoin the team in Guwahati, where India’s ODI World Cup campaign is set to commence. Gill has been in fine form where he cracked a century and was involved in a match-winning partnership with Shreyas Iyer. Gill’s impressive centuries include two against New Zealand and one each against Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Australia in the current year. Read | Shreyas Iyer delivers epic statement on 'stealing' Virat Kohli's spot Apart from this, he also smashed a T20I century for the same period. Notably, Gill is the leading run-scorer in ODIs for 2023, where he scored 1,230 runs in 20 innings with an average of 72.35 and a striking rate of 105.03. Thakur too has been a constant member of the Indian ODI side since 2022. He was not at his best in the first couple of matches. The team management seems to be keen to play Thakur considering he provides some quality with the bat. India captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were rested for two ODIs along with Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav. All these players will rejoin the squad for the 3rd ODI in Rajkot. Jasprit Bumrah too was rested for the second ODI when he spent time with his family. Mukesh Kumar was called up as his cover. However, Bumrah is all set to make a comeback for the third ODI in Rajkot. In a latest update from Cricbuzz, Axar Patel has been ruled out of the third ODI since he has not yet recovered from the left quadriceps strain sustained during the Asia Cup. Currently, he is undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) located in Bengaluru. With this development, the selectors will be keen to test Washington Sundar in this match.