India vs Sri Lanka | India’s Probable XI for 1st ODI
India play an ODI for the first time in the absence of Virat Kohli this year when they take on Sri Lanka in Dharamsala on Sunday. Stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma will be confident of a win with a host of talent like Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, and Yuzvendra Chahal returning to crease after a break.
Openers
Rohit Sharma- Â He has been in tremendous form of late, both in the limited-overs as well as the longest format of the game. While he comes to the game at the back of a century and two fifties in the recently-concluded Test series, in the six ODIs prior to that, Rohit has scored two centuries and two fifties. Sri Lanka bowlers have been smooth to deal with in the Tests, and Rohit would hope to keep it that way in the ODIs
Shikhar Dhawan- India
Middle-order
Ajinkya Rahane- This remains perhaps the most important slot for the team. The Mumbaikar has to fill the large shoes of skipper Virat Kohli in the third position, and given the terrible form he has been against Sri Lanka in the Test format, the 29-year-old will be under tremendous pressure. In ODIs though, Rahane has been impressive this year scoring seven fifties, four of which came against Australia.
Dinesh Karthik- This will be Karthik’s huge chance to cement a place in the squad ahead of their South Africa tour. The experienced right-hander has expressed his confidence in cementing the No.4 spot recently and a quick look at his knocks this year also gives a good impression. He has played only 5 ODIs this season, in which he has two fifties and an important 37 against New Zealand in Mumbai in November.
Manish Pandey- With Kedar Jadhav ruling out of the series due to a hamstring injury, Manish Pandey is more than likely to take up his place in the middle order. The 28-year-old has had
 © MS Dhoni- With Rohit Sharma hardly having any experience at the helm, the Indian team will rely hugely on MS Dhoni once again. The former skipper has been in good form this year, so far, having scored 700 runs at an average of over 65. Dhoni is also closing in on 10,000 runs in ODIs and would want to continue his scoring touch.
Hardik Pandya- Clearly, the revelation of the year for team India. One of the best athletes in the side, Pandya is expected to be fit and raring and go now. He has over 500 runs this year with four fifties, two Man-of-the-Match and one Man-of-the-Series. He will be India’s go-to bowler in the death overs while batting, he can be a monster if he gets going.
Bowlers
Kuldeep Yadav- After coming into the spotlight with some breath-taking spells against Australia earlier this year, the chinaman bowler has been quiet over the period of the Test series and also in the series against New Zealand. Being
Yuzvendra Chahal- Of late, Chahal has usurped the place of the skipper’s go-to bowler from Yadav. He has taken 15 wickets in 11 games so far this year, but he has really attained his peak in the New Zealand series where the 23-year-old took four wickets in three games.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar- Bhuvi could play only the first Test match against Sri Lanka in Kolkata before he had to leave for personal reasons, and still finished with the best figures in the whole series. The swing bowler has really been at the top drawer this year where he has taken 25 wickets in 21 matches so far with an economy rate of 5.09.
Jasprit Bumrah- Perhaps the most exciting talent that the whole nation looking at. The Mumbai Indians bowlers