Three spinners are definitely a choice: India The captain Rohit Sharma
When it comes to playing XI decisions and selection, the Indian team management likes to play it close to the vest, although Rohit Sharma made a suggestion that he would use three spinners in the match against Australia on Sunday. Shardul Thakur and R Ashwin were always going to be in it for the No. 8 position, and it looks like the local lad will win because of the surface and circumstances that could provide spinners with a chance to make a lot of runs.
Hardik Pandya is more responsible for the team's advantage and the ability to play with the "luxury of playing three spinners and three seamers" than the pitch or conditions. Pandya is viewed by the skipper as a "proper fast bowler" in addition to being a seamer.
Yes, that's the luxury we have, as I don't really think of Hardik Pandya as merely a seamer, so we can afford to play three spinners. He is a legitimate fast bowler with good acceleration. That offers us a benefit, then.
"That allows us to have the luxury of using three seamers and three spinners simultaneously, so there's a chance that we can use three spinners and three seamers on this pitch as well. It also provides us with a batting option at number eight, so like I said, we'll have to return here tomorrow afternoon to see how the pitch looks, but yeah, using three spinners is definitely an option," Rohit said at the pre-match press conference in Chennai.
In a bilateral ODI between the two teams that took place at the same location back in March, spin was crucial to both sides' success. Rohit anticipates that conditions for tomorrow's match will be similar to the one in which the hosts lost. The team's experience of extreme humidity in March has somewhat subsided, but the heat is still high.
"I hold similar views. I don't think it's so hot right now, even if it was rather hot in March. Both yesterday evening and the previous day's afternoon training sessions were held. Therefore, it seemed as though the weather was considerably better than it had been in March. March was a hot and muggy month. Despite not being very humid, it is hot. It's a tad bit better, Rohit claims.
Regarding the pitch, Rohit is interested in seeing how it appears on game day. The captain states that the "colour of the pitch changes quite a bit here" and that they should wait until match day to adjust their plans. Plans for batters and bowlers will be more important than the Playing XI selection.
But I don't think I get the pitch. The pitch's tint varies a lot here, so we'll still have to wait and see what it looks like on match day. Since that is what we always do in India, we will wait until that match day to see what needs to be done.
"Of course, we don't choose the starting lineup when we arrive on game day. However, the players—bowlers included—and batsmen have different ideas about the kinds of shots they want to play on the field as well as the length and lines they need to bowl in. Everyone approaches the question of how best to get ready for a given game in a different way. However, we will visit here tomorrow to observe the situation, as everything in India is ever-changing and every day is a new day, adds Rohit.