No place for Harshit Rana! Indian Cricket Team's playing 11 for ODI series against Australia - Predicted

Indian Cricket Team will tour Australia for three ODIs and five T20Is.

More than the recently-concluded home test series against the West Indies, the buzz is about the upcoming Australia tour among the Indian cricket fans. And why not? Two Indian greats are set to be in action since the conclusion of ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Indian colours.

Since then, many things have changed in Indian cricket, but the craze for Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma has only increased. These two legends will be part of the upcoming ODI series against Australia, which will begin on October 19.

Shubman Gill will make his debut as full-time ODI captain, and we will beginning of a new era. There are a lot of questions in front of the team management about the selection. On that note, let’s take a look at the best possible XI for India for the ODI series.

Indian Cricket Team’s playing 11 for ODI series against Australia – Predicted

1. Shubman Gill (C)

The newly appointed Indian ODI captain Shubman Gill will be the first name on the team sheet. He will be sharing opening duties with the ex-captain, Rohit Sharma. Gill has been in a good form with the bat recently, and will be expected to start his ODI captaincy debut with a win in the very first ODI.

2. Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma will be opening along with the newly appointed captain Shubman Gill in what will be his first ODI appearance after being removed from captaincy. We all know what he brings to the table as an opener. But, the question will be, will he continue batting with the same aggressive approach, which brings more chances of failure? that too when his place in the team depends on his performance. But, with his experience and numbers, he is the ideal opener for India in this format.

3. Virat Kohli

After a gap of seven months, Virat Kohli will be back in Indian colours. Since the last time he played for India, a lot has changed in his life. He won the Indian Premier League and then retired from test cricket as well. As usual, Kohli will be taking the No. 3 spot and with his experience, we can expect him to score loads of runs in the series.

4. Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Iyer will be back in the Indian colors and now with more responsibility as he has been promoted as vice-captain of the ODI side. He was India’s leading scorer during ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and has been in red-hot form. He has also played in Australia before, and his confidence is sky-high at the moment. Moreover, Iyer recently captained India A to record a win over Australia A in a three-match unofficial ODI series.

5. KL Rahul (Wk)

KL Rahul has become India’s go-to batter in tests and ODIs. Originally an opening batter, KL Rahul has found his best spot at No. 5 in ODIs and has been a proven match-winner for the side since last couple of years. He will also do the wicket-keeping duties in the three-match series.

6. Nitish Kumar Reddy

India have shown great faith in Nitish Kumar Reddy, and they are grooming him as an all-format all-rounder. With Hardik Pandya being ruled out of the series, Nitish will get drafted into the playing XI and play the role of fast-bowling all-rounder. Nitish toured Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy last year, and also scored a hundred in the Melbourne test. He will give India a good balance with both bat and ball.

7. Washington Sundar

Washington Sundar a year before was a backup spinner, but now he has become a crucial member of the squad. India have not picked Ravindra Jadeja in the squad, which means Sundar will be India’s first-choice spin-bowling all-rounder in the side. He bowls well overseas and is a handy batter lower down the order.

8. Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav is among the first-choice players in white-ball cricket for India. The wrist spinner recently finished as India’s highest wicket-taker in Asia Cup 2025 and also the home test series against the West Indies. He will be expected to do the same in the ODI series as well.

9. Mohammed Siraj

Mohammed Siraj has become India’s workhorse in the last year or so. The hard work and effort he is putting in every game for the team is a blessing. After being snubbed for the ICC Champions Trophy earlier this year, Siraj will make his ODI comeback in this series, and with Bumrah being rested, he will be expected to lead the bowling attack.

10. Arshdeep Singh

With no Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh might get a spot in India’s playing XI for the three-match ODI series against Australia. Just like Bumrah, he has the skillset of bowling with the new ball as well as the death overs. Adding to that, the Australian conditions will be perfect for him to bowl, where he will get good bounce.

11. Prasidh Krishna

Prasidh Krishna is one of the tallest Indian pacers going around. Standing at 6 feet 2 inches, he is a perfect bowler for Australian conditions. He also did well in the test tour of England, which is the reason that he might get an edge over Harshit Rana in the playing XI. He is a hit-the-deck-hard bowler and is perfect to bowl in the middle overs.

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