India's Probable Playing XI in the 2018 Asia Cup

#2 Middle Order Batsmen : KL Rahul, Ambati Rayadu, MS Dhoni(wk) and Kedar Yadav

In the absence of Virat Kohli, KL Rahul is most likely to bat at the number 3 position. In ODIs, Rahul has been most successful at the top of the order. But the presence of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan as openers will not allow Rahul to get his favourite slot at the top.

At number three, he will have a very critical role to play in both in building the innings and in chasing down big targets .

Ambati Rayadu, who had a tremendous IPL 2018 and a good domestic season, should be chosen as the number 4 batsmen of the team. His batting has a perfect mixture of defense and aggression. Because of his recent good form, Rayadu should be chosen ahead of Manish Pandey in the playing XI.

At the number 5 batting slot, MS Dhoni is an automatic choice. Nowadays, he starts off his innings slowly, and then accelerates at the later stages. As a result, batting at the 3rd down position is a better option for him than coming out at number 6. It will give him the opportunity to play more overs, and score match winning centuries.

Kedar Yadav should be the Number 6 batsman of the team. Because of his aggressive batting style, he is ideally suited for the 4th down position.His ability to pick up crucial wickets with the ball, makes him a valuable asset for the ODI team. However his inconsistency is a cause of concern.