Kohli and Rohit set to return for ODIs in Australia

India's selection panel, which includes RP Singh and Pragyan Ojha for the first time, is meeting on Saturday to pick the squads for the ODI and T20I tour of Australia beginning on October 19. It is likely to mark the return of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who are retired from T20Is and Tests and haven't represented India since the Champions Trophy victory in March.

The tour begins with three ODIs on October 19, 23 and 25, followed by five T20Is between October 29 and November 8. Here are some of the key questions ahead of the selection.

After a rare break following the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy in England, India have a packed calendar, with the Asia Cup followed by the ongoing two-Test series versus West Indies, and the first ODI in Australia scheduled five days after the end of the second Test. Less than a week after the fifth T20I in Australia, India host South Africa for a two-Test series followed by three ODIs and five T20Is.

Three players appear to be certainties in all three formats: Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav. Given the workloads, the quick turnarounds between formats, and the fact that the next major ODI tournament is the World Cup in 2027, India might consider resting these players for the ODIs in Australia. If they are picked for the 50-overs games, they could be released midway through the T20I series to prepare for the Tests against South Africa.

If Gill were to be rested for the ODIs, Yashasvi Jaiswal - who was withdrawn from the Champions Trophy squad after being named in the provisional squad - should be his replacement. He could also join Abhishek Sharma at the top in the T20Is.

While Kuldeep does not have a like-for-like replacement, India might have to reconfigure the spin-heavy squads they picked for the ODI Champions Trophy and the T20 Asia Cup to suit Australian conditions.

Hardik Pandya missed the Asia Cup final with a left quadriceps injury and there are doubts over his availability for the tour of Australia too. Nitish Kumar Reddy is an option to join Shivam Dube as the seam-bowling allrounder in the T20I squad.

The replacement for Hardik in ODIs is an interesting question: Dube played the last of his four ODIs in Sri Lanka last year, while Reddy is yet to feature in the format. The 2027 ODI World Cup is in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. India will want to explore their options for seam-bowling allrounders as back-up for Hardik, and Australia might be the right place to get started.

Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana are Nos. 1 and 2 in the line behind Bumrah - both were part of India's squads at the Asia Cup as well as the Champions Trophy. But who is the third specialist fast bowler should Bumrah be rested in either, or both, formats in Australia?

Mohammed Siraj could be in line for an ODI comeback, having last played in Sri Lanka over a year ago. Prasidh Krishna is an option too, should India prefer his hit-the-deck style as a middle-overs enforcer. Prasidh - the Purple Cap winner at IPL 2025 - is the likely third seamer in the T20I squad if Bumrah is rested.

India's most recent ODI and T20I squads have featured several spin allrounders: Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar were at the Champions Trophy, while Axar played the Asia Cup where Washington, along with Riyan Parag, was a standby.

A similar number of spin allrounders is unlikely given the conditions: it's hard to see India picking both Jadeja and Axar in an ODI in Australia, and the series could be a good opportunity to blood some seam-bowling allrounders instead.

Parag featured in both white-ball teams last year, and had scores of 67 and 58 in two List A games for India A against Australia A this week. Tilak Varma - who scored 94 in the second of those matches after his Asia Cup final heroics - could also be a contender for the ODI squad.

Rishabh Pant is unlikely to make it to the squads for Australia as he is still recovering from the fractured foot he suffered in England. While he hasn't played a T20I since August 2024, Pant was India's back-up wicketkeeper to KL Rahul at the Champions Trophy.

Sanju Samson's last ODI was in December 2023 in South Africa, where he batted No. 3 and scored his maiden hundred. Jitesh Sharma and Dhruv Jurel are the other wicketkeepers to feature in India's recent T20I squads, but neither has compelling List A credentials.