Shivam Dube or Rishabh Pant - who should start in India's playing 11 for Sri Lanka ODIs?

Having clinched the T20I series against Sri Lanka by a thumping 3-0 margin, Team India will shift their focus to the one-day series. The Men in Blue will play three ODIs against Sri Lanka from August 2 to August 7. All three matches will be held at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

Having retired from T20Is, Rohit Sharma is back to lead the Indian team in the one-dayers. Virat Kohli, who also retired from T20Is after the World Cup last month, is also part of the team. Further, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul, who were not part of the T20I squad, are also back and should be part of the playing XI right away given their impressive record in the ODI format.

Since Rahul can keep wickets in one-dayers, there could be a tussle between Rishabh Pant and Shivam Dube for one of the middle-order slots. In this feature, we analyze who between Pant and Dube should start in India's playing XI.

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Dube vs Pant in ODIs - A tricky choice for India

Dube's selection in the one-day squad for the Sri Lanka series ahead of Sanju Samson, who scored a ton in his last ODI, came as a surprise to many. Even if one considers that he can bowl a bit, his military medium pace hardly poses a challenge to batters in any format.

The 31-year-old left-handed batter has only played one ODI for India so far. His debut game in the format came back in December 2019 against West Indies at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Dube was out for nine off six balls and was banished from the one-day team. The southpaw made a comeback into the T20I side based on some strong performances for Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

If we consider his performances in T20Is since his comeback to the Indian team in August 2023 during the Ireland series, he has scored 343 runs in 20 matches at an average of 38.11 and a strike rate of 134.50. He registered back-to-back fifties against Afghanistan at the start of the year at a rapid pace.

The left-hander struggled for most of the T20 World Cup, although he did get starts. However, he did score a crucial 27 off 16 in the final against South Africa in Barbados. Dube hasn't got the big scores to show for his efforts since his international comeback but seems to have done enough to convince the Indian selectors that he can do the job for the team in the one-day format.

Shifting focus to Pant, the keeper-batter last played a one-dayer for India in November 2022 in Christchurch. He got injured in a horrific car crash in December of the same year and was out of action for an extended period. Having impressed for Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the 2024 season, Pant was picked in the T20 World Cup squad.

It has been a mixed bag for the 26-year-old since making a comeback to the Indian team. In 10 T20I matches, Pant has scored 222 runs at an average of 27.75 and a strike rate of 131.36, with a best of 49. Pant began the T20 World Cup in promising fashion, registering scores of 36* and 42 against Ireland and Pakistan respectively.

The aggressive left-hander's T20I career, however, has been a case of what could have been. And so, almost by default, he lost his way again and fell cheaply in the next few games. Pant gave his wicket away easily in the semifinals and the finals, falling for four and zero. He did score 49 in the first T20I against Sri Lanka in Pallekele but looked out for rhythm for most of his innings.

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Is Pant ahead of Dube in the race for an ODI spot?

Since Dube has played only one ODI and Pant last played a one-dayer in November 2022, a conclusion cannot be drawn based on their one-day performances. And if we look at their recent T20I form, neither of them has done anything exceptional in the matches that they have featured in.

Pant, however, has the experience of 30 one-day matches in which he has scored 865 runs at an average of 34.60 and a strike rate of 106.65, with one hundred and five fifties. Given his track record, the keeper-batter might get a chance in the playing XI ahead of Dube, who can come in if Pant fails to deliver the goods.