India’s current Men and Women combined ODI XI

The Indian Cricket, at the moment, is on a high given the performance of both the men’s and women’s teams at the international stage. The Men’s team are no.1 in Test format, 2nd in the ODIs and fifth in shortest format in the ICC team rankings while the Women’s team is third in the ODI rankings and fifth in the T20I ICC team rankings.

While the Men’s team is preparing for the ICC World Cup 2019, the women’s players recently participated in the Women’s T20 Challenge during the IPL 2019 and garnered huge response. Women’s cricket witnessed a massive resurgence in India when the girls in blue led by Mithali Raj reached the finals of the ICC Women’s World T20 2017 and then the semi-finals of the World T20 2018 as well.

Players like Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Deepti Sharma, Mithali Raj herself, Jhulan Goswami and others have become huge stars in their own right. This is the reason we have decided to form a combined XI from the current Men’s and Women’s players in ODIs.

Here is India’s Current Men & Women combined XI in ODIs:

1. Smriti Mandhana

The 22-year-old left-handed opener, Smriti Mandhana has set the world on fire with her innovative and aggressive batting at the top of the order. Mandhana has been amazing for India and was one of the best attractions in the Women’s World Cup 2017, where she cracked a 90 against host England and a century against West Indies. In 50 ODIs, she has scored 1951 runs at an average of 42.41 with four centuries with the best score of 135 and 19 half-centuries to her name at an impressive strike rate of 83.51.

She has gone from strength to strength, becoming the lynchpin of Indian batting lineup with Mithali, Deepti, and Harmanpreet. She has also become a global star participating in T20 leagues in England and Australia. Truly a wonderful batter to partner perhaps the most devastating Indian opener in men’s game.

2. Rohit Sharma

Rohit ‘Hitman’ Sharma is perhaps known for a career-altering move to the top of the order in 2013, and since then has been the top opener in ODI cricket by far. He has hit three double centuries in the format and with the highest score of 264, the Mumbai-born batsman has destroyed bowling attacks at will.

Sharma has also become an amazing long innings player in ODIs and also as a stand-in captain has been wonderful for the team. He has more than 8,000 runs with 22 centuries in 206 matches and perhaps is the most frequent six-hitter for the Men in Blue with 218 maximums to his name along with 696 fours. Rohit Sharma has been hailed as a modern day ODI great and he has held up his end of the bargain with consistent scores of values.

3. Virat Kohli

A modern-day great, current Indian captain Virat Kohli has been phenomenal in the ODI format scoring 10,843 runs in just 227 ODI matches with a brilliant 41 centuries at an average of 59.58 and despite only hitting 116 sixes, he maintains a healthy strike rate of 92.96.

Virat Kohli knows how to build an innings and he has mastered the art of chasing a score down and given his amazing track record in chases, where he averages just below hundred, no one can deny him the tag of a certified legend. The Delhi lad will be leading the Indian team in the ICC World Cup 2019, in his only second ICC tournament as Indian captain with what is considered to be the most well-rounded Indian team to ever enter such a prestigious event.

4. Mithali Raj

A legend in the true sense of the word, 36-year-old Mithali Raj has nothing more to prove to anyone as she has seen the rise and rise of Indian women cricket in her 20-year international career. She has 6720 runs in 203 ODI matches with 7 centuries and the highest score of 125* at an average of 51.29.

Raj, who had made her ODI debut in June of 1999, has seen India reach the finals of the Women’s World Cup two times but falling short of winning the title. The right-hander has proved to be an asset wherever she bats and her experience has helped the likes of Harmanpreet and Mandhana establish themselves as the modern stars of the game. The Indian cricket will always be thankful to Mithali for setting such a brilliant example and foundation for others to follow.

5. MS Dhoni (c & wk)

Who can be chosen to led the Men’s and Women’s combined India XI? The only captain to win all the three ICC trophies, MS Dhoni will be the answer from the most. The Ranchi-born right-hander has played 341 ODIs and scored 10,500 runs with 10 centuries at an average of 50.72 and 224 sixes to his name to go with the best score of 183* in the format. Unarguably the greatest finisher in the game of ODI cricket, he has already established his legacy in the format and his numbers are just a proof of it.

Apart from being an amazing batsman and captain, Dhoni is also an amazing wicket-keeper with 434 dismissals in the one-dayers. Along with Mithali Raj, he provides a wealth of experience to the younger lot and his keen understanding of cricket and ability to help the bowlers pick wickets is just what every player wants in a team.

6. Harmanpreet Kaur

Punjab born Harmanpreet Kaur has redefined hard-hitting in the modern era of Women’s cricket. The current Indian T20I captain, Kaur has also amassed some good numbers in the ODI format as well, with 2244 runs in 93 matches, 3 centuries and the highest score of 171* which came in the knockout match against Australia in the Women’s World Cup 2017.

Kaur recently became the first Indian woman cricketer to score a T20I century and has been influential in the renaissance of the Indian batting along with the likes of Mandhana, Rodrigues and Deepti Sharma. She will be the perfect finisher along with Hardik Pandya in this line-up.

7. Hardik Pandya

Hardik Pandya is a blessing in disguise for the Indian team given his amazing hitting abilities and skills to bowling at over 80 mph consistently. He has the strike-rate of 116.58 in 45 matches in ODI format with 4 half-centuries and has picked 44 wickets as well.

Pandya brings to the table some amazing power-hitting capabilities which were on display in the IPL 2019 and along with Harmanpreet, he will form an amazing combination as a finisher in the death overs as he can take on both spinners and fast bowlers alike.

8. Deepti Sharma

All-rounder Deepti Sharma holds the record for the highest score by an Indian batswoman in ODIs, with her 188. She has 1380 runs in 48 matches and picked 56 wickets with the best of 6/20. Deepti is often employed to bowl in powerplays to keep the runs down, especially on turning wickets.

Though rarely she gets to bat at the top of the order, she is known to both anchor an innings or hit the bowlers around the park with ease. In this team, she can employ a similar kind of role at number eight and her primary role would be bowl 10 overs.

9. Kuldeep Yadav

Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav has an amazing haul of 87 wickets in 44 ODI matches with the best of 6/25, against England. Kuldeep has become the go-to spinner for Kohli in ODIs as the wicket-taker has shown the ability to adapt to any kind of pitch in any conditions.

He has some good amount of variations in his kitty and despite sometimes not getting any help from the pitch, Kuldeep has managed to pick wickets in heap. The Uttar Pradesh lad has shown the ability to fox a batsman easily by reading his game in a matter of minutes and adjusting his line and length accordingly.

10. Jasprit Bumrah

Find of the decade for India, Jasprit Bumrah has been a revelation in all the forms of the game. Unearthed in the Indian Premier League by Mumbai Indians, Gujarat’s Bumrah impressed one and all with his abstract action and ability to bowl fast yorkers with great control.

The right-hand fast bowler has 85 wickets in 49 ODIs with the best bowling figures of 5/27 against Sri Lanka. Bumrah has the ability to move the ball both in the air and off the pitch and everyone knows what he can do with the old ball in the death overs.

11. Mohammed Shami

The Mohammed Shami we are seeing at present is the 2.0 version of the older fast bowler, who debuted in 2013 and impressed one and all with his ability to bowl accurate line and lengths and his amazing wrist position. Shami then played the ICC World Cup 2015 with a serious knee issue, which he got treated after the event, where he was the second highest wicket-taker for India with 17 scalps.

Some fitness and personal issues hampered his return to the team and he found himself out of contention from white-ball cricket. However, he got a second chance in the team for the tours of Australia and New Zealand and he grabbed them with both hands and was rewarded with a spot in the 2019 World Cup squad, where he is the leading contender to partner Jasprit Bumrah in the starting XI.

12. Poonam Yadav (12th player)

Perhaps one of the best spinners in the women’s cricket today, Poonam Yadav has redefined leg-spin with her penchant for bowling as slow as she can despite the danger of being hit for sixes and fours. The 27-year-old tweaker has played 41 ODIs for her country and picked 63 wickets with a best of 4/13.

Poonam is known to bowl in the powerplay overs as well and is often brought on in death overs to get wickets of the well-set batters. Poonam Yadav is also a capable fielder anywhere in the field, giving her captain ability to utilize her the best she wants to.