With India’s ODI squad for the upcoming three-match series against England expected this week, speculation is rife that the BCCI selectors will hand the 23-year-old uncapped opener Yashasvi Jaiswal his first call-up to a 50-over squad. 

Jaiswal has in roughly 18 months as an India cricketer scored 1798 runs in Test cricket at an average exceeding 52, to go with 723 in T20Is with a strike-rate of 164.31 and one century. While Jaiswal has not played a List A match since November 2022, he boasts a very good record in the format: 1511 runs from 32 innings at an average of 53.96, with a best of 203 (scored when he was 17 years old) and a strike-rate of 86.19. He’s got plenty of IPL experience as well, which is what pushed him into India’s T20I squad in 2024. 

So, with an eye on the ICC Champions Trophy in February, is time that the BCCI selectors include Jaiswal for the three ODIs against England this month? 

Following on from his successful first tour of Australia, where he finished as India’s top run-scorer with 391, including the highest individual score of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (161), there is the argument that Jaiswal’s confidence, form and aggression are needed in ODIs. He also offers a left-handed option to a top four comprised of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer, with potentially KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya to follow at five and six, unless the team management sneaks in Rishabh Pant somewhere. 

But to separate a successful pair in Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill, who in 25 innings at the top together have made 1732 runs at an average of 72 per innings (they are India’s fifth best opening act in ODIs), will be a big move. 

Rohit is on his last legs, it seems, as an international cricketer whereas Gill, at 25, has a good decade ahead of him. It is difficult to see Rohit, who will turn 38 in April, last until the next ODI World Cup in 2027. More reasonable is to expect him to take stock of his ODI career after the Champions Trophy ends in early March. Gill averages 58 in ODIs, has a double-century to his name in the format, and has been part of the leadership circle. 

The most straightforward way to get Jaiswal game time in the 50-over format would be to rest one of the two regular openers, which seems unlikely ahead of the Champions Trophy. The other possible route is if the selectors don’t pick Shreyas Iyer, who has a fine record at No 4, and reshuffle the batting order. 

While it may seem that the time is right to give Jaiswal a chance in ODIs, more practically he may have to wait until after the Champions Trophy to see whether Rohit takes a call on his career. Either way, the talent of the 23-year-old is undeniable, and there’s every chance he will take to ODI cricket the way he has to Tests and T20Is.