Veteran spinner and India’s leading Test wicket-taker among active cricketers, Ravichandran Ashwin, is poised to make his ODI comeback after a hiatus that stretches back to January 2022. The off-spinner has received an unexpected call-up for the forthcoming three-match ODI series against Australia, commencing this Friday. This series holds significant importance as it serves as the final rehearsal for the Indian cricket team before the eagerly anticipated 2023 Cricket World Cup, scheduled to kick off on October 5. While Ashwin is not part of the World Cup squad, his inclusion has sparked speculation.

Ajit Agarkar, the chief selector of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), unveiled the squad for the Australia series on Monday and shed light on Ashwin’s selection. Agarkar explained that Ashwin’s inclusion resulted from an injury sustained by the left-arm spinner Axar Patel, who is a member of the ODI World Cup squad. Axar had to sit out the Asia Cup final due to a quadriceps injury.

When questioned whether Ravichandran Ashwin would serve as a replacement for Axar Patel if the latter remains unfit for the World Cup, Ajit Agarkar responded: “There are a couple of guys anyway, both him (Ashwin) and Washington (Sundar).

“What we know with Axar’s (Patel) injury is that he should be okay. We will have a clearer picture once we know that. But, at least it leaves us with options. If these guys get a couple of games now, (it) gives the team management a few options if they need to go that way.

“If the need arises, we will probably have a look at it at that stage. But I don’t think there is a need to speculate right now or make any decisions because we are hoping that Axar is fit.”

Notably, the selectors have opted to rest the in-form Kuldeep Yadav for the first two ODIs.

When asked if this decision was made to keep an element of surprise for the World Cup, Captain Rohit Sharma explained, “Kuldeep is a wrist spinner and needs rhythm, but we also considered that his bowling form is excellent. As Ajit (chief selector) mentioned, we needed to give some players a chance since they played only one match in the Asia Cup and are part of the WC squad. We needed to assess them as well.

“Kuldeep has been in our radar for the last 18 months, and we didn’t want to overexpose him. He will feature in the final match, and the best way to gauge him is in the third match. We have two practice games, and he will regain his bowling rhythm,” added the skipper.

• KL Rahul (captain)
• Ravindra Jadeja (vice-captain)
• Ruturaj Gaikwad
• Shubman Gill
• Shreyas Iyer
• Suryakumar Yadav
• Tilak Varma
• Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper)
• Shardul Thakur
• Washington Sundar
• R Ashwin
• Jasprit Bumrah
• Mohd. Shami
• Mohd. Siraj
• Prasidh Krishna