Former cricketer Irfan Pathan picked his India playing XI for the first ODI against Australia. The Shubman Gill-led side is scheduled to play three-ODIs, starting with the series-opener in Perth on Sunday. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Irfan picked new captain Shubman Gill to open alongside the returning Rohit Sharma. The likes of Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul completed the middle-order for Irfan, while Nitish Kumar Reddy and Axar Patel were the two all-rounders in his team.

In the bowling department, Irfan picked Kuldeep Yadav as the designated spinner, with Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh to spearhead the pace battery.

The 40-year-old also advocated for the selection of young pacer Harshit Rana, highlighting the 23-year-old’s ability with the bat as well.

“I think Harshit will play. He is the only bowler in this unit who can also bat. I think he will be promoted to the number eight position. I see him in that position as the third fast bowler. It will be an opportunity for him also to perform,” Irfan said on his YouTube channel.

Irfan feels that the series against Australia will be a great learning curve for new captain Gill, due to the presence of stalwarts Rohit and Kohli.

“India will be under a new leader. They will play under Shubman Gill. A big challenge for Gill will be with how much respect he moves forward with Rohit Sharma. This is very important. A lot depends on how much respect juniors give the seniors. I am sure Gill respects both Rohit and Virat. It will be important to see how you can take Rohit forward irrespective of his performance. This will be a challenge on the field and off the field,” he said.

Irfan Pathan’s India XI for 1st ODI vs Australia:

Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (C), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vc), KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj.