Mohammad Kaif picks his playing XI for 1st IND vs AUS 2025 ODI, leaves out KKR pacer

Former batter Mohammad Kaif picked his India playing XI for the first ODI against Australia. The game will be played on Sunday, October 19, in Perth. India will play a three-match ODI series Down Under.

For his openers, he went with skipper Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma. Further, he included Virat Kohli at three, Shreyas Iyer at four, and KL Rahul at five. The top five were on the expected lines. Mohammad Kaif then picked three all-rounders in his team.

He included Nitish Kumar Reddy as the pace-bowling all-rounder. Axar Patel and Washington Sundar were his two spin-bowling all-rounders. He then picked Kuldeep Yadav as the lead spinner. His two frontline pacers were Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh.

Mohammad Kaif's playing XI for 1st ODI against Australia - Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh. (via his YouTube channel)

Kaif left out star Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) pacer Harshit Rana from his XI. Harshit has played five ODIs so far and has bagged 10 wickets. While Siraj will lead the pace attack, it will be interesting to see who India goes with alongside him.

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Mohammad Kaif pushes for Kuldeep Yadav's inclusion

In the same video, Mohammad Kaif reckoned that India would make a mistake if they left Kuldeep Yadav out. He opined that if the Men in Blue wanted batting depth, they could use Nitish Kumar Reddy as the third seamer.

"If you want batting till number eight, then you have to play Kuldeep at nine and leave one pacer out. Nitish Reddy can be the third pacer with three spinners, eight batters, and Kuldeep as well," he said.

Moreover, he reflected that Kuldeep was a better wicket-taking option than Axar Patel and Washington Sundar. He credited the wrist-spinner for his ability to pick wickets irrespective of the conditions.

"His bowling style suits every pitch. He is a better option in Australia than Sundar and Axar. Kuldeep has proved himself across formats and conditions. If you do not have Bumrah, Shami, and Kuldeep all three in the XI then it will be a problem," he added.

Notably, India have rested Jasprit Bumrah for the ODI series while Mohammad Shami was not picked.