IND vs SL: Gautam Gambhir wants India to rest Mohammed Shami in the 3rd ODI

Mohammed Shami [Source: Twitter]

On Thursday, hosts India handed Sri Lanka a four-wicket defeat to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the ongoing ODI series. 

Bowling first, the Men in Blue bundled out the Lankan Lions for a paltry 215 and chased the total easily, riding on a match-winning partnership by KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya. 

However, after India's clinical win, former opener Gautam Gambhir opined that India should rest Mohammed Shami for the third ODI.  

Gambhir, an integral member of the 2011 World Cup winning squad, reckoned the hosts should replace Shami with Arshdeep to manage the former's workload ahead of the Australia Tests. 

Here's what Gambhir stated

"I would like to see Arshdeep Singh come in for Mohammad Shami. Give Mohammad Shami a break because he will have to do a lot of bowling against Australia if Bumrah is not fit. And in the same time, you can groom Arshdeep in the ODI format as well,

"I don't mind India rotating their fast bowlers, but you cannot give your batters a break, they got to keep playing consistently in the ODI format."

Shami has been ordinary in the series, scalping only a solitary wicket at a miserable economy of 6.88 in two outings. 

So, considering his form and the upcoming Australia series, India might consider benching him in the final dead rubber in Thiruvananthapuram. 

Also Read: Alyssa Healy ruled out of T20Is against Pakistan; set to be available for T20 World Cup