3 reasons why the Australia series could be do-or-die for Suryakumar Yadav's ODI career 

Team India batter Suryakumar Yadav, albeit with his late introduction to international cricket, has certainly made up for it with his exceptional exploits in T20 cricket.

The majority of the cricketing world assumed that the talented batter will translate his performances from T20 cricket to the ODI format, but that has not been the case.

In 50-over matches, Suryakumar Yadav has had trouble pacing his innings and has not made the most of his opportunities. He ventured into the format with a promising set of matches against Sri Lanka in his debut series but has faded away ever since.

Since the start of 2022, he has only scored one ODI fifty. His career numbers at the moment read 488 runs after 18 innings at an average of 28.33, which does not justify his talent by any means.

He has been a part of the Indian ODI setup for quite a while but has had to wait for opportunities with his peers performing rather well in comparison.

With Shreyas Iyer not in the scheme of things for the upcoming ODI series against Australia due to injury, it unquestionably presents as a huge chance for Suryakumar to prove his mettle with a consistent run of games.

Here are three reasons why the Australia series could be do-or-die for Suryakumar's ODI career.

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#1 Spots for the middle order are limited

Team India have already penciled in a robust squad for the ODI World Cup, with the white-ball home series preceding the Border-Gavaskar Trophy being a clear indicator.

In the absence of Rishabh Pant, the wicketkeeping duties have been assigned to KL Rahul. The Karnataka-born player, to his credit, has done rather well in the ODI middle order, mirroring his ongoing red-ball woes. Shreyas Iyer has been exceptional in the No.4 slot, leaving no room for Suryakumar Yadav.

Additionally, Suryakumar has not done enough to make the job tougher on Iyer and Rahul in terms of competition. He is far behind the duo who are as of now well embedded into the first-choice playing XI.

A potent series against Australia will possibly help him close the gap.

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#2 Good performance on home soil against a potent Aussie unit will rest his case

The current priority of the Indian management is to crack the code in dominating matches on home soil.

That is exactly what they have done so far, establishing mammoth totals on the board after batting first and securing consecutive whitewashes over Sri Lanka and New Zealand.

Shubman Gill has acclimatized well to the Indian conditions without breaking any sweat, and the management is likely to favor players who will excel in subcontinent conditions, at least for the short term, considering that the ODI World Cup takes place in India, in six months' time.

So far, Suryakumar Yadav has played 153 runs in six innings, which is not dominant enough to warrant him a place in the first-choice playing XI.

A good set of performances against the Australian bowling unit comprising the likes of Mitchell Starc and Adam Zampa will do him a world of good with respect to his ODI career.

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#3 Opportunities will reduce as the ODI WC comes closer

It is natural that the management will have a clearer idea of their ideal playing XI with each match closing into the ODI World Cup. This also narrows down the list of players who will make it into the playing XI.

After the ODI series against Australia, the Men in Blue have an away series against West Indies, the 2023 Asia Cup, and another ODI bilateral series against Australia before the World Cup comes knocking by.

The management will not be too keen on chopping and changing the playing XI, barring cases of extreme form drops or injuries, which complicates Suryakumar Yadav's case, should he not give the management, a selection headache.

The first ODI between India and Australia will take place on Friday, March 17, at the Wankhede Stadium, in Mumbai.

How many runs will Suryakumar Yadav score in the ODI series against Australia? Let us know what you think.