"Can’t keep adding more batters" - Parthiv Patel predicts key change to India's playing XI for 3rd AUS vs IND 2025 ODI

Former India keeper-batter Parthiv Patel reckons that the Men in Blue will bring wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav into the playing XI for the third ODI against Australia in Sydney. Sharing his thoughts on India's team combination for the first two matches, he opined that the visitors must trust their top order batters.

India went down to Australia by two wickets in the second ODI at the Adelaide Oval on Thursday, October 23. Sent into bat, the Men in Blue put up a below par total of 264-9 on the board. In the chase, the Aussies cruised home to victory in 46.2 overs, although they lost eight wickets in the process.

India have gone into both the matches with the same playing combination, preferring two finger-spinner all-rounders in Axar Patel and Washington Sundar. As a result, left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep has been forced to watch the action from the bench despite being in great form across formats.

During a discussion on ‘Cricket Live’, JioStar expert Patel backed Kuldeep to feature in the Indian playing XI in the third one-dayer in Sydney. Patel opined that the Men in Blue must look to play their best combination instead of trying to provide extra cushion to the batting. He said (as quoted by Deccan Chronicle):

"We will definitely see Kuldeep Yadav playing in the third ODI. As far as the combination is concerned, India will have to trust their top order, whether it’s about performance or runs and stick with the right balance. There’s no need for an extra cushion in batting.

"Kuldeep Yadav can provide those crucial wickets in the middle overs that India has been missing. If your top-order batters get out early, that’s part of the game. You can’t keep adding more batters to cover for that. The focus should be on playing the best combination to win," the former India stumper added.

Batting first in Adelaide, India lost Shubman Gill for nine, while Virat Kohli registered his second consecutive duck. Rohit Sharma (73 off 97) and Shreyas Iyer (61 off 77) combined to push India towards a respectable total.

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"Kuldeep should have been part of the playing XI right from the first game" - Former India pacer Varun Aaron

During the discussion on Cricket Live, former India pacer and JioStar expert Varun Aaron also backed Kuldeep's inclusion in the playing XI for the Sydney dead rubber. Sharing his thoughts on the wrist spinner, Aaron commented that Kuldeep is an attacking bowler, who can strengthen the team's bowling line-up. He said:

"Kuldeep Yadav should have been part of the playing XI right from the first game of the series. You might have to sacrifice a batsman to make that happen, but it’s worth it. Playing just two fast bowlers in Australia isn’t ideal, but Kuldeep is someone who can get you wickets and those wickets make up for the runs you might lose by playing one batter fewer.

"At the moment, India seem to be relying on batters making mistakes to get wickets, whereas Kuldeep is a genuine wicket-taker who can create those breakthroughs on his own," Aaron concluded.

Looking at the performance of India's spinners in the ongoing ODI series in Australia, Axar has claimed two wickets at an economy rate of 5.07, while Sundar has picked up three scalps at an economy rate of 5.67.