Rohit Sharma’s absence notwithstanding, India will look to continue their purple patch in New Zealand when they take on the hosts in the first of three ODIs at Seddon Park on Wednesday.

India skipper Virat Kohli will undoubtedly miss the services of his deputy, but the Kiwis will also be without skipper Kane Williamson for the first two games.

While Rohit being ruled out of the series has to an extent been neutralised by Williamson’s injury, the Indians will still want to keep a clean mind when they take the field and not think too much about their 5-0 win in the T20I series. But they have had a good run in ODIs recently as they came from behind to beat Australia in the last series they played before embarking on the New Zealand tour.

On paper, the Indian team clearly looks stronger, but then, cricket isn’t a game played on paper and considering the experience of the Kiwi players and the angles that come into play on New Zealand grounds, the Indian bowlers — led by Jasprit Bumrah — will need to keep their focus intact.

Speaking on the eve of the game, Kohli revealed that Prithvi Shaw will open the batting as he wants KL Rahul to keep wickets and bat in the middle-order looking at the road ahead.

“It is unfortunate that Rohit (Sharma) cannot be part of the ODI series, the impact he has had is there for everyone to see. We do not have any ODI tournaments to look up to, so it is ideal for him to get recovered. In ODI cricket, Prithvi is definitely going to start, KL will play in the middle-order. We want him to get accustomed to keep and play in the middle,” Kohli told reporters.

Indian skipper also said that there can be no excuse and the boys need to put in an improved performance.

“We definitely have recognized it as something that, if you look at the average age of this team, it’s 27 max. So we should be fielding way better than what we have. I think the standards of fielding overall were not that good from either side. T20 cricket it can happen because the game is so fast-paced,” Kohi said.

“So once you get into a nervous zone, it’s very difficult to get out of it. It’s moving so quickly and the ball keeps coming to you.

While Kohli did defend his boys to an extent saying that mistakes can happen in the fast paced T20 format, he was quick to add that the team has also made mistakes in the 50-over format and there have been talks on the same in the dressing room so that such mistakes aren’t repeated.

“Even in one-day cricket, we have had performances that we are not proud of and there’s no hiding from it. We’ve spoken about it so many times. You certainly expect a young bunch of guys who are very fit and very, very good fielders to do the job for you in the field collectively and not just focus on batting or bowling. It’s about taking all three skills seriously and committing to it like bowling or batting,” he said.

But Kohli once again said that one cannot expect immediate results on the field and the team is headed in the right direction as far as fielding is concerned.

“With fielding it’s not a matter of execution or result immediately. Things can be taken for granted. That’s something that we want to stay away from. The team’s heading in the right direction, whatever is lacking we need to be able to correct and move forward,” he explained.

For the Kiwis, selector Gavin Larsen said that while Tom Latham will lead the team in Williamson’s absence, Mark Chapman has been drafted into the squad on the back of his good showing against India ‘A’.

“It’s hugely disappointing for Kane, but with so much important cricket still ahead this summer we must take a safety first approach,” Larsen said.

“It’s great to welcome Mark back into the one-day unit off the back of consecutive centuries for New Zealand A against a strong India ‘A’ side. Mark’s a versatile player who can cover multiple batting positions and his fielding is a real upshot to have in the squad.”

Agencies