3 reasons why India not playing Arshdeep Singh in first two IND vs ENG ODIs 2025 has been the wrong move

Team India pacer Arshdeep Singh is yet to play a game in the ongoing three-match ODI home series against England. Arshdeep was picked over Mohammed Siraj and is a part of India's 2025 Champions Trophy squad as well.

Harshit Rana and Mohammed Shami have been the two pacers operating for the Men in Blue in the two ODIs so far. The first game was played on February 6 in Nagpur while the second match was played on February 9 in Cuttack.

India have won both matches and currently lead the series 2-0, with the final ODI to be played on February 12 in Ahmedabad. It is expected that Arshdeep will feature in the final ODI.

The Men in Blue have given an opportunity to Harshit to give him game time should Jasprit Bumrah not recover in time for the Champions Trophy. The youngster is reportedly the front-runner to replace him in such a scenario.

However, not playing Arshdeep in the first two ODIs of the three-match series against England is the wrong move, and here are three reasons why.

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#3 Arshdeep Singh should have played all games considering he was picked over Mohammed Siraj

Arshdeep Singh has picked up 12 wickets from 8 ODIs at an average of 24.08 and an economy of 5.05 (Image Credits: Getty)

Arshdeep Singh was picked for the England ODIs and the 2025 Champions Trophy over Mohammed Siraj, who is more experienced at the international level and played in the 2023 ODI World Cup as well.

Should Jasprit Bumrah fail to recover in time for the Champions Trophy, with Siraj not there and Mohammed Shami returning from injury, Arshdeep will be India's best bet as far as fast bowling is concerned.

In such a scenario, the left-arm quick should have ideally been playing all three ODIs against England as it is India's last international assignment before they head to Dubai for the marquee ICC event.

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#2 Mohammed Shami has not been as sharp with his bowling

Veteran pacer Mohammed Shami, making his return to international cricket after a long gap, played a few games in the T20I series and has played both the ODI so far. While the idea of giving Shami the required game time is right, the pacer has not been as sharp with his bowling.

He bowled only eight overs in the first game, giving away 38 runs and picking up a wicket. In the second game, he bowled 7.5 overs and gave away 66 runs at an economy of 8.4 with just one wicket.

With Shami returning from injury, having someone like Arshdeep Singh would have taken the pressure off Shami as compared to bowling with Harshit Rana, who made his debut in this series. Arshdeep's presence would have allowed Shami to breathe easier and perhaps perform better than he has.

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#1 Taking Arshdeep to the Champions Trophy without enough game time could backfire

Another reason why Arshdeep Singh not playing in the first two ODIs is the wrong move is because given that he is a part of the Champions Trophy, the left-arm seamer would have benefitted from game time himself.

Should Bumrah miss out, Arshdeep could be leading India's attack with Shami only having just returned to international cricket. Notably, Arshdeep has played only eight ODIs in his career to date.

That said, he does not have enough experience in the format at the international level either. The pressure of playing in his first 50-over ICC tournament, in the possible absence of Bumrah, could get to him as he has not had enough game time ahead of the tournament either.