Young Stars are likely to debut early in England series?

Suryakumar Yadav, Krunal Pandya and Prasidh Krishna - in the three-match home ODI series against England. It's likely that two of the three will feature in the line-up that takes on England in the first ODI.

When KL Rahul scored his first home ODI century - against West Indies in Visakhapatnam - he dropped his bat and helmet down and stood with his hands over his ears. There was a message he wanted to convey to his detractors. But things haven't quite gone the way Rahul would have wanted.

In New Zealand last year, he was exceptional in the T20I series and adapted to the middle-order role pretty quickly. In the three ODIs, he made unbeaten 88, 4 and 112 even as India got blanked 0-3. Post the pandemic-induced break, he continued to occupy the middle-order spot and got a half-century as well in Australia. With Rishabh Pant back in form, Rahul would have hoped for an extended run in the middle-order as a specialist batsman.

After picking up the hand injury in Australia, Rahul has spent valuable time on the sidelines. He was part of the Test squad but fully aware he was not going to play barring any injuries to Pant and Saha. In his last four T20I, he's managed two ducks and scores of 14 and 1.

His poor returns prompted Virat Kohli to take up the opening slot and play Suryakumar Yadav at No. 3. The change in format doesn't mean Rahul will slot into the eleven. Cricbuzz understands that the think-tank wants to try the newcomers - Suryakumar Yadav, Krunal Pandya and Prasidh Krishna - in the three-match home ODI series against England. It's likely that two of the three will feature in the line-up that takes on England in the first ODI.

Not only that, Kohli also hinted that he's more than likely to open in the shortest format to keep Suryakumar in the playing XI going ahead. "There are a couple of things internally we have discussed. As far as the opening combination is concerned, Shikhar and Rohit will definitely start," Kohli said on the eve of the first ODI. "It will be interesting because there are a few younger players who are getting an opportunity in the one-day set-up for the first time, so I am really keen to see how they go about executing their skills against a very, very strong England side.

"Rohit and I enjoyed batting together (in the fifth T20I), we saw the effects of us batting together, and seeing that we have 20 overs to play; what that does to the opposition. So, it's not a guarantee that this is going to continue. I am going to open in IPL to keep all options open. I've batted at No. 3, at No. 4 now I want to go back to opening - a role that I have done successfully in the past in T20 cricket. So that I provide an option to provide a slot for someone like Surya, who is playing the way he is at the moment.

"If he can continue playing like that, then I should be ready to play any kind of role that the team requires. We will have that conversation closer to the T20 World Cup when we get there."