The new ODI rules and the conditions in England will force India to go in with five specialist bowlers in the upcoming Champions Trophy, according to captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who reckons all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja will play a key role.
“Conditions are very different compared to sub-continent. We have to look at the composition of the side and see what kind of bowlers we use but the conditions and the new rule forces us to play with five bowlers,” Dhoni said.
“Jadeja gives us the balance that we really need. He is a great asset to have with his 10 overs of spin bowling and batting down the order,” Dhoni said.
“We are hoping Jadeja fires or else we have a few others,” he added.
Rohit Sharma was promoted to open the innings during the ODI series against England at home but the skipper indicated that Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan will start off in the tournament.
“It’s good to have Shikhar and Vijay back in the side. They both scored runs in Test matches against a good side. Vijay had a decent IPL whereas Shikhar did well after coming back from injury. It’s always better to start off with two proper openers. Rohit will be the back-up option while I consider Dinesh as a specialist middle-order batsman,” he explained.