By Karan Agrawal 
The trio of Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Shreyas Iyer is set to miss the last round of Ranji Trophy group stage matches to prepare for the three-match ODI series against England which will be followed by the Champions Trophy. The decision is presumed to be taken keeping in mind the short turnaround time between matches. A source familiar with the development confirmed the news “He will join the Indian team,” the source said.
The Itinerary
The men in blue haven’t played a significant amount of ODI cricket since the final of the 2023 World Cup having featured in just six games three of which were against South Africa right after the World Cup which saw India field a second-string side. The only series India played with a full-strength XI was against Sri Lanka in July last year.
The Decision
Earlier this month the Indian selectors instructed the centrally contracted players to play domestic cricket to get some game time before the Champions Trophy as a result players like Rohit Sharma played his first Ranji Trophy game after a decade against Jammu & Kashmir.
The Return
Rohit’s return to the Ranji Trophy did not pay much dividend as the right-hander couldn’t make any significant contribution to Mumbai’s total. Batting first against Jammu & Kashmir Rohit only scored 31 runs in the two innings combined which has raised questions over his place in India’s test team for the tour of England scheduled later this year. More than the scores that Rohit accumulated in the match it was how he got out which is a cause of concern. In both innings, he got out while going toward the ball rather than letting the ball come to him.
The Performance
If we talk about the performance of other test regulars it was a no-show as the majority of the players got out without making a significant contribution. Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was the first to disappoint as the left-hander was dismissed after contributing just 4 runs to the team’s first innings total of 120 and departed after scoring 26 runs of 51 balls in the second innings. He was followed by Shreyas Iyer who accumulated scores of 11 and 17 in the two innings, respectively.