New Delhi: The West Indies tour gave captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid the chance to test their bench strength and give more opportunities to the backup options because they only had one series, consisting of three matches, to prepare for the Asia Cup and the ODI World Cup a month later.

In order to give players like Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, and Ruturaj Gaikwad a chance to compete, the captain and Virat Kohli took a backseat. All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja revealed that India have their World Cup squad figured out, despite the fact that the experimentation and Dravid's justification for it did not sit well with the majority of viewers and experts.

The batting lineup is largely set, but India is still concerned about KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer's health because their inclusion would instantly elevate the team to the top contenders for the elusive trophy and reduce the selection dilemma to just two positions. In fact, according to a report, the team management has chosen just 18 to 19 players for the 50-over competition, even though by ICC rules, they can choose only 15 of those players.

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In accordance with ICC regulations for the 50-over World Cup, each team must submit a preliminary squad by September 5th. However, the team management has the luxury of making as many changes as they want between the initial and final submissions. The final squad, which will only consist of 15 players, must be submitted by September 27. After September 28, any team wishing to make a change must obtain the ICC's permission.

Only Australia had submitted their initial squad as of Tuesday, August 8; however, the fact that it consists of only 18 players suggests that three of them will be dropped from the final squad.

The three-match ODI series between Australia and India will end on September 27, giving them the luxury of tinkering with their lineups up until that point. Five days after the Asia Cup final, on September 22, the competition will start with matches in Mohali, Indore, and Baroda.

While Australia will travel to India with their preliminary 18-person World Cup team before making a decision, India is more likely to travel with their pool of 16–18 players for both the Asia Cup and the home series against Pat Cummins’ side before making a decision on the final team.

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India's preliminary squad for Asia Cup :

Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Mohmmed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Surykumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan (wk), Axar Patel, Sanju Samson, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mukesh Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal.

Axar Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal are vying for the third spinner position, while Shardul Thakur and Jaydev Unadkat are vying for the extra seamer position.

Jasprit Bumrah's fitness, which will be greatly influenced by the T20I series in Ireland, will continue to be an issue for India, so Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj will be certainties in the pace department. The star bowler, who is recovering from a lower-back stress fracture sustained in September of last year, will only be able to bowl four overs in the shortest format and at least eight overs in the ODIs during the Asia Cup. The fourth fast bowler spot would be automatically filled by Hardik Pandya, leaving Thakur and Unadkat for the back-up pace option. 

Given his ability to bat down the order and his ability to prove his mettle in the West Indies series with eight wickets in three ODIs, Thakur has a better chance of making the final squad. Unadkat, who is the only left-handed seamer on the team, has the advantage in this situation. Arshdeep Singh is also available, but he has been transferred to the Asian Games team along with Mukesh Kumar, who excelled during the West Indies tour.

Axar, who will be the third spinner, has an advantage due to his all-around skills, but Ravindra Jadeja will still be the first choice. Given their treatment of Chahal during the ODI series against the West Indies, the team management may have also hinted at moving forward with the left-arm spinner.

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