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The India National Cricket Team has been producing a bunch of talent in recent times. The pool of players is huge, as a player like Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has to sit out of the T20I team despite good performances. Now former India batter Yuvraj Singh has raised his voice over Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi should be added to the ODI squad.
India is in New Zealand for the full tour with a five-match T20I series followed by a five-match ODI series and two Test matches. The Men in Blue have already won the five-match T20I series after winning the first three games, and the focus is now on the ODIs as Shubman Gill’s side would want to win the series away from home.
"I would love to see him": Yuvraj Singh wants to see Abhishek Sharma in ODI squad
While speaking to PTI, Yuvraj Singh was asked whether Abhishek Sharma will be an X-factor post the ODI World Cup 2027 and when he will be playing in the ODIs for the Men in Blue. Yuvi, replying to it, said that he would want to see Abhishek in the ODI side as well; he also mentioned that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi should also be picked in the 50-over format.
VIDEO | Mumbai: Former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh believes that not regularly including players such as Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the ODI squad amounts to doing an injustice to their talent. "I would love to see him (Abhishek Sharma) in the ODIs, to be honest. I have said this before: if we are not picking players like Ishan Kishan, Abhishek and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in 50-over cricket, then somewhere down the line, we are not doing justice to our talent," Yuvraj told PTI on the sidelines of the launch of Protocol 32. "I understand we have some great players and it is hard to make a spot for them. I think the way they are performing, they should be in the squad soon, hopefully. Whatever he has achieved is because of his hard work, and credit goes to him," he added. (Full video available on PTI Videos - https://t.co/bIyFWTfmBd)
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 30, 2026
"I would love to see him (Abhishek Sharma) in the ODIs, to be honest. I have said this before: if we are not picking guys like Abhishek, Ishan Kishan, and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in 50-over cricket, then somewhere down the line, we are not doing justice to our talent," Yuvraj told PTI later in the day.
"They should be in the squad soon": Yuvraj Singh wants to see Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in ODI squad
Yuvraj further added that there are great players in the ODI squad, which is making it hard for players like Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to make it to the squad. But keeping their performances in mind, they should be added to the 50-over format. India’s ODI batting is stacked up, and there’s no place.
"I understand we have some great players and it is hard to make a spot for them. I think the way they are performing, and the other guys, they should be in the squad soon, hopefully," he added.
India have stacked up batting in ODIs
India have already named two different squads for the five-match ODI series. With a busy schedule, the BCCI has announced two squads for the 50-over format as some of the senior players will leave the side to focus on the two-match Test series against the Kiwis. For the first three games, Shubman Gill will captain the side.
In the last two ODIs, Shreyas Iyer will be leading the side, with Ishan Kishan as his deputy, as regular vice-captain KL Rahul will also leave the ODI squad and shift focus to the traditional format of the game, just like Gill. This has been the reason that Jasprit Bumrah has not been named in the ODI squad.
The Men in Blue have been managing their players well and have been giving importance to the two Test matches, as they have a chance to qualify for the WTC final, as their next home series is against Australia.
