MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh almost certain to be selected ahead of the youngsters for the ODIs against Sri Lanka

Indian skipper Virat Kohli has made it crystal clear that he won’t take a rest during the One Day International series against Sri Lanka. Though the Sri Lankans does not seem to be a serious threat at the moment, Kohli will be a part of the team when they don the coloured jersey.

There were spreading rumours that some of the big names from the team can be given a break which will pave the way for some promising youngsters. According to reports, the board is thinking of grooming the players for the ICC World Cup in 2019. The selectors are scheduled to meet on Saturday to decide the Indian squad for the limited over format games against the Lions.

Virat Kohli on Friday rubbished all reports of him being rested for the ODIs. “Who said I am not playing? I don’t know where this came from, but I have no problems in playing.” said Kohli in his statement.

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It is expected that the selectors will go with almost the same squad that they played in West Indies, for the ODIs against Sri Lanka. However, a few changes might be seen in the form of Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin being rested. This gives us a hint that Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni are most likely to get picked despite facing a lot of criticism recently.

Both these seniors were heavily criticized for performance with the bat during the West Indies tour. Dhoni had a much better outing than Yuvraj but was slammed for his slow scoring rate. On the other hand, Yuvraj was significantly poor with his form struggling to get runs.

BCCI had made a clear statement after India’s Champions Trophy final loss against Pakistan. The board made it clear that they will start the grooming and rebuilding process for 2019 World Cup immediately so that they do not fall short of time. “Team India may not be left with any time if a rebuilding process is not started immediately” stated the BCCI.

Both MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh were present at Bengaluru for an evaluation Test at the National Cricket Academy. This almost confirms that both of them will be heading towards Sri Lanks for the ODI series. Kedhar Jadhav and Jasprit Bumrah were also present at the NCA for their respective Tests and are almost sure of travelling to the island nation. However, doubts remain over Suresh Raina who also had to go through the evaluation test.

Speaking to DNA on Friday, a top BCCI official said “Can they (Yuvraj and Dhoni) survive till the next World Cup is something which is bothering all of us in the BCCI,”.

The official also stated that he does not have any say in the selection process and will leave it to the selectors to decide the team. With the likes of Manish Pandey, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant knocking on the doors it is a major threat for some of the senior players in the team. After the Sri Lanka tour, India will lock horns with the Aussies, Kiwis and again with the Lions in ODI battles.