India is looking to complete a whitewash against Australia in the series finale this Wednesday, September 27. Unfortunately, the squad has suffered a blow as Axar Patel is unable to prove his fitness in time. Dealing with a left quadriceps strain, Axar was only a conditional pick for the Rajkot match, but since he hasn't fully healed, he'll miss the final game. The 29-year-old all-rounder, who is slated for the 2023 World Cup, has been rehabilitating at Bengaluru's National Cricket Academy since sustaining the injury during the Asia Cup Super Fours encounter with Bangladesh on September 15.
With Axar out, the chances of Ravichandran Ashwin making the World Cup squad have improved. After a 20-month hiatus from ODIs, Ashwin returned on September 22 for the series opener and quickly proved his worth in the second match, where a blistering spell of three wickets in seven deliveries triggered a collapse in the Australian lineup.
Despite Ashwin's performance, a final decision on his spot is pending. BCCI insiders suggest that Axar—who was initially preferred over Ashwin—is expected to be fit well before the World Cup begins on October 8 against Australia in Chennai. Current reports indicate that the left-handed all-rounder should be ready for the pre-tournament warm-up games.
The squad will see the return of Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav, who were rested for the first two games. Additionally, star bowler Jasprit Bumrah is back after a brief break. While stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli return to the lineup, the team will be without Shardul Thakur and the prolific Shubman Gill for this final match.
The two players being rested will head straight to Guwahati to link up with the team for their first warm-up game against England on Saturday, September 30. This is a missed opportunity for Shubman Gill, who has been the standout batter of the series with 178 runs and a century in Indore; his absence means he won't have the chance to climb past Babar Azam in the ICC ODI rankings.