Steve Smith will tell Australia to learn from their Delhi mistakes and play at their own pace as they battle for pride in the third Test against India.

From 85-2 in their second innings last time out, Australia crumbled to 113 all out, and India rolled to a six-wicket win that allowed them to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

The best Australia can do is draw the series, and stand-in captain Smith wants to see more resilience from the batters, including himself among those that fluffed their lines last time out.

In fact, he was the lowest scorer of all Australia's specialist batters last time out, with nought followed by nine, and Smith being pinned lbw by Ravichandran Ashwin when sweeping was the trigger for the tourists' implosion.

Smith said on Tuesday: "I don't think there's been too many times I've walked off the field and I've gone, 'What the hell am I doing?'."

He was left "bedazzled" and "pretty angry" with his own blunder, adding: "It wasn't my finest moment.

"We probably just rushed things a little bit, and it's something we'll talk about. We don't have to play at such a high tempo and risky tempo."

Smith, who says Australia must "learn to adapt a little bit better", has not managed a half-century in his last five Test innings in India, his longest such barren stretch in the country.

He has never gone six successive Test innings in any country without making at least a fifty, so he has one last chance to avoid this being the first time.

India's 2-0 series lead means they have won their last three men's Tests against Australia, having also tasted victory in Brisbane in January 2021. Their longest winning streak in Tests against Australia is four matches.

Australia are without regular skipper Pat Cummins, who has returned home for personal reasons, but Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc are poised to return from injury.

The tussle in Indore could see Virat Kohli become just the fifth man to reach 4,000 runs in Tests played in India, as he stands 77 runs short of that milestone.

India captain Rohit Sharma will aim to close out a series victory at the Holkar Cricket Stadium, and there is the tantalising prospect of these teams meeting again in the World Test Championship final at the Oval in June.

That is in the back of minds for now, but will come to the forefront soon enough, possibly if India secure the series before the fourth match at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium.

The prospect of India asking for a green pitch for that game, rather than the spinner-friendly surfaces they have been playing on so far, has been teased already.

Rohit wants India to be smart about their preparation for a likely trip to London, and while they would not be able exactly replicate English conditions, a green pitch would at least to some extent simulate what likely awaits them.

The India skipper said it was "definitely a possibility", adding: "If we do what we do here and we get the result we want, we might kick off doing something different in Ahmedabad."

He pointed to India and Australia having plenty of prior experience of performing in England that could stand them in good stead.

"It's not going to be alien conditions as such for both teams," Rohit said, "so it will be a good contest between the teams, whoever the two teams are."

Rohit Sharma will miss the first ODI for India against Australia due to "family commitments" and Hardik Pandya will act as stand-in captain.

Rohit's absence means Pandya will captain the ODI team for the first time after making his debut in the format in 2016.

The opener is set to be played in Mumbai on March 17 after the ongoing Test series, in which India have already retained the Border-Gavaskar trophy by taking a 2-0 lead with two red-ball matches to play.

Ravindra Jadeja returned to Test cricket with career-best bowling figures of 7-42 in the second innings as India secured a six-wicket victory on Sunday, and he featured in the squad having not played an ODI since July 2022.

Shreyas Iyer was included after a back injury ruled him out of the 50-over series with New Zealand and the first Test with Australia, while Jasprit Bumrah remained absent as he recovers from a similar issue to Iyer.

There were no changes to the red-ball squad for the final two Tests of the series with Australia, but no vice-captain was named with KL Rahul, who acted as Rohit's deputy for the first two matches, struggling for form having mustered just 117 runs over his last five matches in the format.

Rohit Sharma explained how India's bowling "masters" made sure not to panic before an Australia collapse gave them a comprehensive victory in the second Test.

Australia looked to have the edge at the start of day three, resuming on 61-1 after holding a one-run lead at the innings break.

India captain Rohit feared the hosts would struggle batting last on a difficult Delhi pitch, but instead it was Australia who bowed to the conditions.

The tourists were all out for 113 by lunch, with Ravindra Jadeja enjoying career-best bowling figures of 7-42.

Ravichandran Ashwin chipped in with three vital wickets, too, and Rohit credited the pair for turning the match in India's favour ahead of a routine chase.

"It is a fantastic result for us, looking at how things were yesterday," the skipper said. "How we came back and finished the job was a great effort from the bowlers.

"Even though the deficit was just one run, I felt we were very much behind – we had to bat last.

"On a pitch like that, you have to come out and try to do different things. We knew they were going to come and play shots. For us, it was about not panicking, and we had to hit those areas rather than panicking.

"I've seen them bowl enough and take wickets in these kind of conditions. We had discussed some things in the morning that we had to do, and that worked for us.

"Look, every game you play here there is some moisture, and what I noticed in three days is it has a lot to offer in the first session.

"Then the pitch gets slower and slower and there is not enough bite in the pitch – it's something we focused on.

"I had a good chat with the bowlers and they are masters of these conditions. It was important for us to stay calm and let the mistakes happen."

Jadeja and Ashwin had also crucially contributed with the bat in India's first innings, scoring 26 and 37 respectively.

Rohit added: "When you play Test cricket, there are a lot of [big] moments, but I thought the partnerships between Virat [Kohli] and Jadeja and Axar [Patel] and Ash [were big] – to get that hundred partnership [114 between Axar and Ashwin] was never going to be easy.

"Even then, we knew we had to bowl well and restrict them to as low as possible."

Australia captain Pat Cummins, whose side now trail 2-0 in the series, said: "I thought 260 was a decent score on the first-day wicket and the guys bounced back well.

"I think they batted well – one or two partnerships – and it was evenly matched at the innings break.

"[Australia's batting] was disappointing – the pressure was right on them, but we will have to review what we could have done differently.

"It's a similar story to Nagpur. Some of it is down to planning, and it wasn't easy when Ashwin and Jadeja were bowling.

"I think both defeats [hurt] – this one particularly when we were ahead of the game."

Rohit Sharma explained it takes an "unorthodox" approach to bat well on Indian pitches after he led his team to a big victory against Australia.

India won the first Test on Saturday after establishing a healthy first innings lead before bowling the tourists out for just 91 to win by an innings and 132 runs.

Australia could not handle the bowling of Ravichandran Ashwin in particular, with the spinner taking 5-37 in the second innings on a Nagpur surface that favoured spinners throughout.

In total, 24 of the 30 wickets to fall came via spin, but Rohit – who scored 120 in India's innings – detailed his approach to dealing with the conditions in his home country.

"The last few years the kind of pitches we have been playing in India, you've got to have application, a clear mindset and some sort of plan about how you want to go about and get those runs," he said at the post-match presentation.

"Since I started opening the batting, I have tried to figure out what can threaten me when I'm batting and working out my methods of scoring runs. I have grown up playing a lot in Mumbai on surfaces which turn a lot.

"I feel you need to be unorthodox as well, you need to use your feet, you need to get to the pitch of the ball, and at the same time try and put pressure on the bowler as well.

"You can't let the bowler bowl six balls on the spot, you've got to try and do something different, and that something different can be your way of doing it, whether it's stepping down the ground, sweeping, reverse sweeping, going over the top.

"There are so many things that you can do, and it's important when you play on pitches like that, you need to understand what is your strength, what are the things you can do and not look at anyone else. I tried to figure out what are things I can do, and I just try and go and apply myself out in the middle."

The win cements India's place in second place in the ICC World Test Championship, with it looking increasingly likely they will face Australia again in the final in June.

India now have a points percentage of 61.67, behind Australia in first (70.83 per cent) but ahead of third-placed Sri Lanka (53.33 per cent), and they will seal their place in the final with two more wins from the remaining three Tests in this series.

Rohit was pleased with the manner of the victory, saying: "It was the start of the series, very important [for] where we stand in the championship table, it was important for us to start well.

"We know when you're playing a series like this it's important to start well, and I was happy that I could put up a performance which could help the team."

Rohit Sharma completed a century for India on day two of the first Test against Australia – but that was just the start of the suffering for the tourists in Nagpur.

It proved to be a grim day for Australia, despite Todd Murphy, a 22-year-old Victoria off-spinner, taking five wickets on debut.

India racked up 321-7 by the close, leading by 144 after Australia were dismissed for 177 on day one at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium.

Ravindra Jadeja followed up his five-wicket haul by leading a lower-order assault on Friday, sharing in an ongoing eighth-wicket stand of 81 with Axar Patel, both men making fifties. Jadeja reached 66 not out, with Axar 52no.

Rohit had lost opening partner KL Rahul just before the close on Thursday, so he returned in the morning looking for others to provide support, and it proved to be in limited supply.

Ravichandran Ashwin fell for 23, given out lbw after a review from Australia, and Cheteshwar Pujara (7), Virat Kohli (12) and Suryakumar Yadav (8) all went cheaply as India struggled to cope with the Australian spinners. Nathan Lyon coaxed out Suryakumar with a teasing delivery the batter went after but missed, the ball clattering into off stump.

Stability at the other end finally arrived in the shape of Jadeja, who helped to put on 61 for the sixth wicket before Rohit fell for 120, perishing to the new ball, Australia captain Pat Cummins uprooting his off stump moments after Steve Smith dropped the century-maker at slip.

That left India on 229-6 and Jadeja went on to reach a gritty half-century, while Murphy completed his five-wicket haul by having Srikar Bharat (8) pinned lbw, again getting the decision on review.

Axar's arrival helped India take the game away from Australia though, and when slip fielder Smith dropped Jadeja from the penultimate delivery of the day, frustration was etched across the face of every tourist.

Rohit's Australia breakthrough

In his eighth Test against Australia, Rohit made it to three figures for the first time. He previously had five 40-plus scores, but his highest score was the 63no he managed at Melbourne in the 2018 Boxing Day Test. This was his ninth Test century in all, and his first since making 127 against England at The Oval in September 2021.

It made Rohit, at the age of 35 years and 286 days, just the second India opener to score a Test century against Australia after turning 35, with Sunil Gavaskar the first to manage the feat.

Jadeja doubles up

This marks the sixth Test where Jadeja has taken five wickets in an innings and hit a half-century. Back in action after recovering from knee surgery, he is continuing where he left off with the bat against England last July, having hit a century at Edgbaston, albeit in a losing cause on that occasion.

Ravindra Jadeja marked his comeback with a five-wicket haul as Australia were bowled out cheaply by India on day one of the Test series at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium.

Much of the talk ahead of the match in Nagpur was over the condition of the pitch and Jadeja took centre stage with the ball, where the tourists collapsed to 177 all out after Pat Cummins won the toss and elected to bat.

Jadeja, playing his first international since August after undergoing knee surgery, took 5-47 and Ravichandran Ashwin (3-42) reached the 450 Test-wicket milestone in fewer matches than any other India bowler as Australia folded from 84-2.

India were 77-1 at stumps in reply as part of a great start to their quest to lift the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Rohit Sharma unbeaten on 56 as both sides bid to secure a place in the World Test Championship final at The Oval in June.

Australia were reduced to 2-2 with Mohammed Siraj trapping Usman Khawaja leg before wicket with an outswinger before Mohammed Shami sent David Warner's off stump flying.

Marnus Labuschagne (49) and Steve Smith (37) put on 82 for the third wicket, but Jadeja had the number three stumped and was on a hat-trick after getting Matt Renshaw lbw early in the afternoon session.

Spinning all-rounder Jadeja struck a huge blow by bowling Smith through the gate, but Peter Handscomb – preferred to Travis Head – and Alex Carey briefly steadied the ship with a stand of 53.

Ashwin then came to the fore to join the 450 club, cleaning up Carey (36) and sending Cummins on his way before Jadeja got rid of debutant Todd Murphy without scoring and Handscomb (31).

Tweaker Ashwin saw the back of Scott Boland to end Australia's innings in the 64th over, and although Murphy had KL Rahul caught and bowled late in the day, Rohit was still there at stumps along with nightwatchman Ashwin.

Jadeja has his day in the sun

As he prepared to make his comeback this week, Jadeja said he "hadn't felt the sun for about five months" during his recovery.

Australia felt the heat as the left-armer shone on day one of the four-match series, claiming his 11th five-wicket Test haul.

This was his fourth five-wicket Test haul against Australia, the most he has claimed against any nation. Since the 34-year-old's debut in December 2012, only Stuart Broad (six) and Ashwin (five) have picked up more against Australia.

Ashwin second-fastest to 450

It was another day to remember for Ashwin, who took his tally of wickets in the longest format to 450 in his 89th match.

That beat the previous India record held by Anil Kumble, who reached that incredible tally in 93 contests. Only Muttiah Muralitharan got to the landmark in fewer matches, the Sri Lanka spinner achieving the feat in his 80th Test.

Pat Cummins is backing his Australia team to rise to the challenge of playing India on a potentially troublesome Nagpur pitch in the first Test.

The surface has been the subject of much debate ahead of this week's opener at VCA Stadium.

Images of the pitch appear to show bare patches that could cause left-handed batsmen some concern against India's spin bowling.

For Australia, that represents an issue, with several of their key batters – including openers David Warner and Usman Khawaja, Travis Head and wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey – left-handed.

Captain Cummins, preparing to name his team ahead of Thursday's first day, acknowledged the turning pitch would be "a factor".

Right-hander Peter Handscomb would appear to be one man likely to benefit, while spin bowler Todd Murphy is set to debut.

But Cummins is also looking forward to seeing how Australia "problem-solve", with Warner, Khawaja, Head and Carey all in good form in a series win against South Africa last time out.

"I think it looks a little bit dry for the left-handers," he said.

"And knowing how much traffic will probably go through there from the right-arm bowlers [from over the wicket], there potentially might be a fair bit of rough out there. That's something you've just got to embrace.

"It's going to be fun. It's going to be challenging at times, but our batters relish the chance to problem-solve on their feet and I think quite a few of them will get that chance this week."

India have a right-hand dominant batting line-up, but captain Rohit Sharma was understandably keen not to focus on the state of the wicket.

"I just feel that you've got to focus on the cricket that's going to be played for the next five days and not worry too much about the pitch," he said.

"The last series that we played here, a lot was spoken about the pitches and all that.

"I think all 22 cricketers who are going to play are all quality cricketers, so not to worry too much about what the pitch is going to be like, how much is it turning, how much is it seaming and all those kind of things.

"You've got to just come out and play good cricket and win the game, as simple as that."

Happy hunting ground

This will be India's seventh men's Test at VCA Stadium, and they have won four of the previous six, losing just once.

It will be the second meeting between India and Australia at this venue, with the tourists beaten by 172 runs back in November 2008.

Australia's bogey team

Based on recent results, India may not need help from the pitch to beat Cummins' side. Australia have lost only one of their past 10 Tests, but that was against India in January 2021.

India have won six of their past eight Test series against Australia, including the past three in a row. They have lost only one of the last 15 Tests between the teams.

Shubman Gill matched an ODI record after cracking another mesmerising century for India and revealed how his rapid accumulation of the "big ones" has come about.

The 23-year-old has begun 2023 with 70, 21 and 116 against Sri Lanka, followed by 208, 40 not out and 112 against New Zealand.

Before the turn of the year, he had one century in 15 ODIs, but all of a sudden he has rattled off three in 10 days.

The difference has been a slight adjustment in focus, with Gill saying: "I don't think I've changed much of my approach when I'm batting out there. It's all about once you get the start, how often you can work those starts into big ones, and that's what I'm trying to learn.

"As soon as I get a start, [I look for] every opportunity that I get to be able to express myself and work all the starts I get into big ones.

"I think it's all about playing according to the situation, not looking at your runs, just looking at conditions and looking at the bowler, and how you can score against this particular bowler, just looking to score all the time."

Gill was speaking after his 78-ball 112 against New Zealand helped to pave the way for a 90-run victory and 3-0 series clean sweep.

It also took him to 360 runs for the series, matching the record for most runs by a batter in a men's three-match ODI series, and equalling the total of Pakistan's Babar Azam against West Indies in 2016.

"It feels nice, this was a really good wicket to bat on," Gill said.

India captain Rohit Sharma made 101 as both openers scorched to three figures in an India total of 385-9 at the Holkar Cricket Stadium.

Rohit paid tribute to his young batting partner for showing such strong form, saying it was a tribute to his attitude that he was performing so well.

Gill was player of the series, and Rohit said: "His approach is quite similar. He doesn't change too much and wants to come out and start afresh.

"As a young player just coming into the team, having that kind of attitude is so important, not to sit on your laurels. He could have taken it lightly but doesn't seem to be that way."

Speaking at the post-match presentation, as India went above England at the top of the ICC rankings, Rohit said his own century, his 30th in ODIs, was a cause for great satisfaction.

It was his first hundred in an ODI since January 2020.

"It means a lot. I've been batting well, and it's about going that extra mile," Rohit said.

"Today the wicket was good, and we knew we needed runs on the board, and it was important for me to carry on and bat for as long as possible."

Shubman Gill and captain Rohit Sharma led the way with explosive centuries as India beat New Zealand by 90 runs to clinch a 3-0 ODI series clean sweep.

After racking up 385-9 at the Holkar Cricket Stadium, India bowled out their opponents for 295, and Tuesday's victory lifts them above England to the top of the ICC ODI team rankings.

Gill, who hit a double hundred in the first match, shared in a stand of 212 with Rohit for the first wicket on Tuesday, the fifth-largest ODI partnership by an India opening pair.

After setting the tone for the contest as both openers reached three figures, Rohit was bowled by Michael Bracewell for 101 from 85 balls at the start of the 27th over, while Gill went soon after for a 78-ball 112 when he got a leading edge to present Blair Tickner (3-76) with the first of his three wickets.

Gill totalled 360 runs across the three games, matching Babar Azam's record for the most scored in a three-match bilateral men's ODI series.

Virat Kohli added 36 and Hardik Pandya weighed in with 54 before becoming the third victim of Jacob Duffy, the New Zealand paceman who returned conspicuous figures of 3-100.

Devon Conway's heroics in New Zealand's reply were in vain, as he cracked 138 from 100 balls before being caught by Rohit at midwicket when looking to pull Umran Malik away to the boundary.

Conway blazed eight sixes in his terrific counter-attack but lacked support. Once he became the sixth Black Caps batter to be dismissed, with the score on 230, the tourists' hopes were all but over, and the innings inevitably petered out.

Holkar a happy home for India

India preserved their 100 per cent record in ODIs at the stadium in Indore, which was staging such a match for just the sixth time. This is the most matches they have won at any venue in ODIs without losing, beating the five wins and one tie they have had at Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

This India team are in a rich vein of ODI form, wherever they play, having won all six of their matches in 2023, with this success improving what was already their best winning run to begin a calendar year.

Duffy's sorry century

Duffy's figures of 3-100 made him just the third New Zealand bowler to concede 100 or more runs in a men's ODI, after Martin Snedden (2-105 vs England in 1983) and Tim Southee (0-105 vs India in 2009). Duffy's three wickets, however, gave him the most victims of any bowler to have conceded a century of runs in such a match.

New Zealand failed to recover from a brutal start with the bat as they lost their second ODI against India by eight wickets, handing the hosts the series victory.

India had held on for a 12-run win in the opening match earlier in the week, and it quickly became clear they would have little difficulty wrapping up the three-match series on Saturday.

The Black Caps were reduced to 15-5 in the 11th over, neither protecting their wickets nor scoring at a rate that might begin to trouble the home side.

A rally of sorts could only recover a score of 108 all out, their third-lowest total against India in the format, meaning Rohit Sharma's men could cruise to victory as they ended on 111-2.

Rohit scored a swift 51 and Shubman Gill 40 not out as the reply required just over 20 overs.

But much of the hard work had been done by the India attack, with Mohammed Shami (3-18) setting the tone when opener Finn Allen went for a duck in the first over.

Mohammed Siraj also had a key early role, giving up only 10 runs across his six overs, before Shami had Michael Bracewell caught behind for 22 as New Zealand attempted to belatedly gain a foothold.

When Mitchell Santner (27) and Glenn Phillips (36) went in consecutive overs, a hugely achievable target meant the result was inevitable.

India bowlers share the load

Shami led the way, but all six India bowlers ended with at least one wicket in a ruthless showing.

The entire group contributed to an extremely economical display, too. Only Kuldeep Yadav did not bowl a maiden over, although his dismissal of Blair Tickner concluded the New Zealand innings, while everyone other than he and Shardul Thakar had an economy rate of 3.00 or lower.

Rohit ramps up the scoring

Bracewell's middling strike rate of 73.33 was New Zealand's best, but Rohit, scoring at 102.00, showed the tourists just what was possible in his destructive innings.

The India captain hit nine boundaries, including two sixes. New Zealand as a team had found the boundary on only 13 occasions without a single maximum.

Rohit was trapped attempting to play another shot, but by then he had reached his half-century and put India in complete control. They were 57-0 at the point the Black Caps had been five down.

Rohit Sharma has urged India to focus on themselves rather than top-ranked New Zealand ahead of another ODI series against the Black Caps.

The first of three matches takes place on Wednesday at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad, with India coming off a 3-0 series victory over Sri Lanka, and New Zealand having just earned a 2-1 success against Pakistan.

India contested a weather-spoiled series in New Zealand in November, with only one of three matches producing a result and the home side taking a 1-0 win.

Now they will hope for three full contests, with New Zealand having to cope without the rested Kane Williamson and Tim Southee, while Trent Boult is unavailable due to T20 commitments in the United Arab Emirates.

India suffered a blow on the eve of the opening match as batter Shreyas Iyer was ruled out of the series with a back injury. Rajat Patidar was named as his replacement in the squad, while Rohit announced Ishan Kishan would come into the middle order.

KL Rahul is another notable absentee, with his wedding to Bollywood star Athiya Shetty widely reported as being scheduled for the coming days.

Captain Rohit said: "New Zealand are a very good team. They're coming off a good series against Pakistan and obviously they're playing good cricket, so it will be challenging for us to come out and execute what we want to execute.

"We just want to continue from where we left off against Sri Lanka.

"We are not going to concentrate too much on the opposition. We will focus on what we want to achieve and what we want to do as a team. The last series was the perfect example of that. We just went out there, played some fearless cricket and take on the opposition."

India's series sweep against Sri Lanka was completed with a record 317-run victory on Sunday in the third game, after posting 390 and bowling out their tourists for 73.

Now they take on the team who sit at the top of the ICC rankings for the 50-over format, with the Hyderabad match followed by games in Raipur and Indore, prior to a three-game T20I series.

Good omens for the hosts

India have won their last two men's ODIs against New Zealand at home, as many as they had won across their five previous such fixtures (W2, L3).

They have also triumphed in their last three men's ODIs at the Hyderabad venue.

Landmark in sight for Gill

Shubman Gill is 106 away from reaching 1,000 runs for India in ODIs. Should he achieve the milestone with a century in this match, his 19th ODI, it would make him the joint-second fastest man to reach the mark, alongside Pakistan's Imam-ul-Haq.

Gill made 116 last time out, in the third ODI romp against Sri Lanka.

Virat Kohli's 45th ODI century helped India to a comfortable 67-run victory over Sri Lanka at ACA Stadium on Tuesday.

Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan, who scored a double century in India's previous ODI last year, were surprisingly dropped for the first of three one-day matches.

But India had few issues without them, as Kohli, Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma led them to an unassailable 373-7.

Gill and Rohit enjoyed a little luck, surviving lbw reviews, but went on to stage a fine opening stand of 143 to put the tourists firmly on the back foot right.

Dasun Shanaka (1-22) eventually accounted for Gill in the 20th over, and an inside edge saw Rohit snaffled by Dilshan Madushanka (1-43) not long after.

But then Kohli arrived to deliver his 73rd international century in all formats.

He, too, benefited from some fortune, dropped on 52 and 81, but Kohli was otherwise in irresistible form with 13 boundaries to eventually finish on 113 off just 87 balls, finally taken by Kasun Rajitha (3-88) when a big slog fell short.

Sri Lanka were always facing an uphill struggle as they moved into bat.

Pathum Nissanka's 72 off 80 was a decent opening effort, but they needed more.

Dhananjaya de Silva (47 off 40) injected some purpose before edging a Mohammed Shami delivery behind to Rahul, and Nissanka followed in the 31st over after slicing Umran Malik (3-57) to Axar Patel at midwicket.

Skipper Shanaka offered late resistance with a tremendous unbeaten 108, finishing with two boundaries, but it was far too late to change the outcome.

India have too much for Sri Lanka

One of the key differences here was India's brilliant efficiency with the bat. All but one of their nine batsmen recorded a strike rate of over 100, and five of those scored over 25 runs.

By contrast, only three Sri Lanka batters had such a strike rate, with Shanaka and De Silva the two to surpass 25.

A bad day for Sri Lanka's bowlers

Rajitha was the only Sri Lanka bowler to claim more than one wicket, and yet even his overs proved fairly expensive as he gave up 88 runs.

Wanindu Hasaranga de Silva (0-67) and Dunith Wellalage (0-65) also had particular difficulty at a ground that is, to be fair, known for being generous for scoring.

Rohit Sharma put the onus on Suryakumar Yadav to bring his T20I form across to the 50-over format ahead of India's series against Sri Lanka.

India take on Sri Lanka in a three-match ODI series starting at the ACA Stadium in Guwahati on Tuesday.

It comes off the back of India beating their sub-continental rivals 2-1 in a T20I series that went down to the last match, which was decided by Suryakumar's superb unbeaten 112 from 51 deliveries.

Suryakumar is number one in the ICC T20I batting rankings, and Rohit is the only player to have scored more tons in the format than the 32-year-old.

However, Suryakumar's form in the shortest format does not guarantee him a place in India's 50-over side, especially with a World Cup looming.

"The problem happens when we start comparing different formats," Rohit told reporters.

"We have to look who has done well in ODI cricket for us, what situation they have done well in. They have been under pressure, and they have gone in, batted and scored runs.

"All those things you need to take into account before making that call.

"I do understand the form as well. Form is important, but the format is also important. The 50-over format is a different format, slightly longer than the T20 format, and the guys who have performed in ODIs will definitely get a run. We are very clear in what we want to do."

Suryakumar enjoyed a fine start to his ODI career but has tapered off, and in his past 10 matches he has averaged only 15 in the format.

He is likely to compete with Shreyas Iyer for a place in the side against Sri Lanka.

Iyer has scored 724 runs in men's ODIs since the beginning of 2022, the most by any batter in the period, while he averages 54 against Sri Lanka.

India will definitely be without star bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who has suffered a setback in his recovery from a back injury.

History on India's side

India have won five of their last six ODIs against Sri Lanka, although their only loss during this period came in the sides' most recent encounter on July 2021.

Sri Lanka have lost 93 times to India in the format, with New Zealand the only side to have lost more times to a single opponent (Australia – 95).

Rohit's happy hunting ground

India skipper Rohit scored an unbeaten 152 runs the last time India played in Guwahati (vs West Indies). Rohit struck eight sixes that day, the most by any player at this ground.

India will be without Jasprit Bumrah for their ODI series against Sri Lanka.

Bumrah, who needs more time to recover from a back injury he suffered before the T20 World Cup last year, is also set to miss much of India's Test series against Australia, which starts on February 9.

The news of Bumrah's setback was confirmed on Monday, on the eve of Rohit Sharma's team taking on Sri Lanka in a three-match ODI series.

"It's an unfortunate incident with [Bumrah]," said India captain Rohit.

"The poor guy has been working very hard all this time. Just when he got back to full fitness, he started bowling and everything, the last two days I think this incident happened where he felt a little bit of stiffness in his back.

"It's nothing major, it's just stiffness. But when Bumrah says anything we have to be very cautious about it. I thought it was important for us to make that decision then to just pull him out.

"When we named him [in the squad], he was in the process of getting his workload done. We need to be very careful with him. He had a major injury before the [T20] World Cup. So we just need to be careful."

India are hoping KL Rahul will be fit for their second and final Test with Bangladesh after he hurt a hand in the nets.

The batter has been skippering the side in the absence of regular captain Rohit Sharma, but he suffered an injury on Wednesday, the eve of the match.

Speaking ahead of Thursday's first day, batting coach Vikram Rathour indicated the blow was not a major one, but did not confirm whether Rahul would be fit to start.

"It doesn't [look serious]," he said. "He seems to be fine. Hopefully he'll be okay. The doctors are looking at it, but hopefully he'll be okay."

Rahul's potential absence would be a major blow to India, who are looking to seal a Test sweep after a 2-1 defeat to their hosts in their ODI series earlier this month.

Aside from Rohit, who is out with a thumb injury, Jasprit Bumrah remains a long-term absentee with back trouble, while Navdeep Saini is also missing for the second game due to a muscular problem.

Interim vice-captain Cheteshwar Pujara is the likely candidate to take over the leadership if Rahul is unable to recover in time, while Abhimanyu Easwaran could make his debut at the top of the order.

The Bengal batsman posted consecutive hundreds for India's A side, and was originally called up to the senior squad as Rohit's replacement.