Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli return to the ODI set-up for the first time since the fateful night of November 19, 2023, as Gautam Gambhir starts a new era as the Team India head coach.

Ahead of the first ODI between India and Sri Lanka, here’s my match preview. 

Sri Lanka vs India 1st ODI || India Tour of Sri Lanka 2024 || 14:30 IST, August 2, 2024

The Men in Blue officially start their journey to the 2025 Champions Trophy under Gambhir, who is taking charge as Head Coach of the Indian team for his maiden ODI series.

India’s T20I side, under new captain Suryakumar Yadav, started their new chapter without the likes of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja with a 3-0 series win.

Following the heart-breaking loss in November last year, India have played only one ODI series until now, which saw KL Rahul leading a bunch of youngsters to a commendable 2-1 series win against South Africa. Rahul now returns to the fold after failing to make the cut for the T20 World Cup squad, with Gambhir and Sharma looking to finalise their squad ahead of next year’s Champions Trophy.

Gambhir has already said that both Sharma and Kohli are in his plans for next year’s main event, with Sharma set to lead the side. With the likes of Rahul and Shreyas Iyer returning, both of whom were critical in India’s stellar World Cup campaign last year, Team India have begun to take shape. In this ODI series, Gambhir will get further answers.

Iyer and Rahul are expected to fill in the middle-order slots, leaving Rishabh Pant wanting for a spot in the starting line-up. Having Rahul at #5 opens up the path for someone like Hardik Pandya (not in the current ODI squad) and another all-rounder for the #6 and #7 slots. Riyan Parag has shown he can roll his arm over whenever a game calls for it, while Axar Patel and Washington Sundar are also likely to become crucial members of India’s white-ball setup going forward. 

The Sri Lanka series will also help the management and selectors get a better idea who the supporting act will be for Jasprit Bumrah, with the likes of Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, and Khaleel Ahmed having on their hands a good opportunity to prove their worth.

On the other side, we have Charith Asalanka’s fairly experienced Lankan Lions, with the likes of Kusal Media, Avishka Fernando, Akila Dananjaya, and Wanindu Hasaranga in the mix. Sri Lanka are coming into this series on the back of a disastrous ODI series against Bangladesh, in which they were beaten 2-1 by the hosts. 

While the batting and all-round sections look fairly strong for the hosts, the main worry for the Lankans will be their inexperienced bowling line-up. Asitha Fernando will be leading the attack, with Maheesh Theekshana set to play a crucial role following Matheesha Pathirana last-minute exit due to a shoulder injury. 

While Sri Lanka have some exciting players in their ranks, the Indian white-ball team are currently one of the best in the world. It’s hard to look past an Indian victory to get the ODI series underway.

Fantasy XI: Rohit Sharma, Kusal Mendis, Virat Kohli, Avishka Fernando, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Charith Asalanka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammad Siraj, Maheesh Theekshana

Venue: Colombo
Winner Prediction: India

Also watch: India v Sri Lanka T20I series review