India will play its first match of 2019 world cup on June 5 against South Africa. With the greatest batsmen from 10 international teams playing for the coveted trophy, let us take a look at India's batting department.

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With just a few days left to world's biggest cricket tournament, Indian players are now slowly coming in the world cup mode after playing the IPL tournament. Though May 23 is the final date for making any changes to the 15 member squad but the chances of any further changes in the team are very less.

India will play its first match of 2019 world cup on June 5 against South Africa. With the greatest batsmen from 10 international teams playing for the coveted trophy, let us take a look at India's batting department.

 

 World cup squad

Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Dinesh Karthik (reserve wicketkeeper), Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, K. L. Rahul, Kedar Jadhav, Kuldeep Yadav, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wicketkeeper), Mohammed Shami, Ravindra Jadeja, Shikhar Dhawan, Vijay Shankar, Yuzvendra Chahal

Of the 15 members of Indian World Cup squad, 9 of them are batsmen and a lot will depend on them in the most coveted tournament whether it is about chasing the target or putting up the total for the opposition.

 

Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli who is leading the Indian team in this World Cup will play his third successive World Cup after being part of  2011 and 2015 tournament when the team was knocked out in the semi-finals by Australia. Virat Kohli who tops ICC batting ranking with 890 ratings will have to testify his captaincy along with his batting. Virat Kohli has the experience of 227 ODI matches and has got more than 10 thousand runs on the record.

 

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma who follows Kohli in ICC batting ranking in ODI is one of the best openers that India have right now. With the mix of his experience and his batting talent, Sharma is unbeatable in many ways. With the experience of 206 ODI matches Rohit Sharma is the most trusted batsman difficult times.

 

Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik who has been picked as the reserve wicket keeper is known for his mature approach in the crunch situations. Today Karthik is the best replacement of Dhoni when it comes on wicketkeeping,batting and experience.

 

K. L. Rahul

Rahul is picked as the third opener after Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan and can be used on no. 3 or no. 4  in the batting order. Though he may be an inexperienced player who has just played 14 ODI matches but no one can question his batting skills. Having missed out on the one-day series in Australia and the limited-over series in New Zealand, he returned to the international stage by scoring well in the Twenty20 series against Australia at home. He analyses the condition and situation of the match and modifies his approach accordingly.

 

Kedar Jadhav

An aggressive Kedar Jadhav has the capability to show his skill with the bat and bowl. He is capable of playing big shots across all around the pitch. Some of his partnerships with Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli have been crucial in managing the fortunes of the Indian line-up. 

 

Mahendra Singh Dhoni

Dhoni who will be playing his fourth and probably the last World Cup will try to give his best before leaving the tournament. Dhoni has already lead the winning team once in 2011 World Cup. Being a perfect finisher from India, he is one of the crucial player who has rescued the team on crucial moments.

 

Ravindra Jadeja

A 30-year-old allrounder, Ravindra Jadeja's experience will be of utmost use. Jadeja was the lead bowler when India won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013 when he was the highest wicket-taker of the tournament. It has been a long time when he scored important runs, but this is the crucial time and he has the potential.

 

Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan is the most reliable Indian opener who can give a good start to the team. Dhawan is known to hit the straps in the big-ticket events. And he is also known to repay the faith shown in him by the team management. He did it in the 2015 World Cup with a sparkling century against South Africa in Melbourne.

 

Vijay Shankar

Vijay Shankar who may be called to bat on no. 6 has the ability to play smart cricket as seen in his first innings in Wellington and later against Australia in Nagpur and Ranchi. Despite little exposure to international level, Vijay Shankar may draw everyone's attention with his skills.

Hardik Pandya

Hardik Pandya will be the one who will be watched with much interest by Indian fans.  With his fast bowling and explosive batting, Pandya can prove his presence with both bat and ball. Pandya who was recently seen smashing bowlers unexpectedly will be India's quiver when it comes to scoring high in few balls