India haven't played ODI cricket since August last year, and the upcoming three matches against England are their only fixtures before the Champions Trophy begins on February 19. Here are some key questions ahead of the series.
Rohit and Kohli's form
The ODI series against England is the last opportunity for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to find form ahead of the Champions Trophy.
Both batters had difficult tours of Australia and did not make substantial scores in their one-off Ranji Trophy appearances since returning to India. Rohit was out for 3 and 28 against Jammu & Kashmir in Mumbai while Kohli, playing his first match for Delhi since 2012, was bowled for 6 in his only innings against Railways.
The pattern of Kohli's dismissals in Test cricket - nicking outside off frequently - was of particular concern in Australia and he was seen working with former India and RCB batting coach Sanjay Bangar at a training facility before his Ranji Trophy match.
ODI cricket, though, is their best format with Rohit providing power as an opener and Kohli prolific at No. 3. Rohit made 157 runs in three innings at a strike rate of 141.44 in Sri Lanka in August, his last productive outing before his form slump. While Kohli did not fare as well in that series, he had broken records in his previous ODI appearance- 765 runs at an average of 95.62 and strike rate of 90.31 during India's run to the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup.
Kohli's also on course to score 14,000 ODI runs in the fewest innings. Sachin Tendulkar (350 innings) and Kumar Sangakkara (378) are the only ones to have achieved the landmark so far; Kohli is 94 away after only 283 innings. Can he get there against England?
Pant or Rahul as wicketkeeper?
With Rohit and Shubman Gill likely to open, Kohli and Shreyas Iyer at Nos. 3 and 4, and Hardik Pandya at No. 6, the wicketkeeper-batter is likely to slot in at No. 5. The choice is between KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant against England and the Champions Trophy.
Rahul has been India's incumbent wicketkeeper in ODIs since August 2023, when Pant was recovering from his car accident. On the tour of Sri Lanka in August 2024, after Pant had made his comeback from injury, Rahul kept wickets in the first two matches - and scored 31 and 0 - while Pant played the third match and made 6.
In terms of recent form, there's little to separate the two. Rahul scored 276 runs in ten innings in the Test series in Australia, while Pant made 255 in nine innings. Rahul then scored 26 and 43 in Karnataka's Ranji Trophy match against Haryana, while Pant scored 1 and 17 for Delhi against Saurashtra. Neither player was part of the T20I squad for the five matches against England.
If India decide to stick with Rahul as wicketkeeper, they will not have a left-hand batter in their top six unless they promote one of their spin allrounders, while Pant at No. 5 gives them that variety if they deem it necessary. They could of course choose to play both, with Rahul as a specialist bat, but that would mean leaving Shreyas out of the XI.
Does Jadeja fit into the XI?
Ravindra Jadeja had not been picked in an ODI squad since the 2023 World Cup, until he was selected for the upcoming series against England and the Champions Trophy. While he was resting from the format, India invested in Axar Patel and Washington Sundar as spin allrounders.
Axar was even the vice-captain in their previous ODI series in Sri Lanka, where Washington also impressed with five wickets in three innings and an economy of 3.88. Axar took four with an economy of 3.86.
Washington has the edge of being an offspinner, while both Jadeja and Axar are left-arm, if India are looking for a varied bowling attack. Washington, however, bowled only two overs in two T20Is against England, while Axar bowled in four out of five games and claimed six wickets in 14 overs with an economy of 7.07.
Jadeja was in superb form for Saurashtra after returning from Australia, taking 12 wickets in their Ranji Trophy match against Delhi. However, he did not bowl at all in their next match against Assam, and is believed to have experienced minor back spasms.
If he is fit, the team management have a tough choice to make between Jadeja, Axar and Washington.
Bowlers fitness in focus
Three of India's bowlers are returning from injury layoffs. Jasprit Bumrah hasn't played since he couldn't bowl during Australia's second innings in the Sydney Test. He's been included in the squad for only the final ODI against England to see if he will be match-fit for the Champions Trophy.
Kuldeep Yadav was out of action since October last year after undergoing surgery for a sports hernia. He only made his comeback last week, taking 3 for 124 for Uttar Pradesh against Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy. He was part of India's previous ODI series in Sri Lanka, where he took four wickets in 30 overs with an economy of 3.40.
Mohammed Shami's previous ODI was the 2023 World Cup final, after which he had ankle surgery followed by a long period of rehabilitation. He made his comeback for Bengal in the Syed Mushtaq Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy but India picked him for only two out of five T20Is against England. Shami took 0 for 25 and 3 for 25 in those fixtures, bowling only 5.3 overs across both matches.
While Arshdeep Singh, who is only eight-ODIs old, and Shami will be India's first choice quicks in the first and second matches against England, one of them is likely to be benched if Bumrah plays the third game.