Former cricketers Saba Karim and Ajay Jadeja raised concerns over India's willingness to experiment at all costs after the side, which required just a run to win from 14 balls, allowed the Sri Lanka spinners to bounce back and force a draw in the opening ODI match in Colombo on Friday. Questions were raised about captain Rohit Sharma giving Shubman Gill the chance the bowl, where he conceded 14 runs. But incumbent India bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule admitted that the management will continue to back this strategy, revealing that more of such is yet to come.

For the third time in an international game and the second time in ODIs, Gill was called upon to roll his arms. But unlike in the three overs he bowled previously in 2023—one in a Test match against Australia and two overs in the ODI World Cup match against the Netherlands—Gill was smashed for 14 runs.

However, Bahutule, giving a peek into Gambhir's approach to the white-ball format as India builds towards the Champions Trophy next year and the T20 World Cup in 2026, stressed that that India will continue to give bowling opportunities to their top-order batters, which will certainly include the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit.

“I think our batters are good bowlers as well, to be honest. You know their primary skill is batting, so at times, they don’t focus much on their bowling. But they have the skills,” said Bahutule in the post-match press meet in Colombo after the ODI series opener.

The new India head coach's plan was previously on display during the T20I series as well, where Rinku Singh and Suryakumar Yadav bowled an over each to defend nine runs in the final two overs, while picking two wickets each.

“You might have seen in the T20Is…Rinku and Surya contributed with the ball. So, an opportunity was given to Shubman here. It’s going to be an all-rounder’s game in the coming days. So, if one or two (batsmen) from the top-order can bowl it will definitely help the team, of course, depending on pitch conditions and situations. Also, it will be a surprise element to the opposition, if a batter can bowl. So, moving ahead there will be ample opportunities for batters to bowl,” he explained.

It won't be surprising if both or one between Kohli and Rohit roll their arms in the remaining two ODI matches of the series against Sri Lanka. The last time Rohit bowled for India, was also in the Netherlands match in the World Cup last year, which remained his only bowling innings in the last three years, and only ever in the format in seven years. Kohli, on the other hand, bowled twice during the World Cup last year, which remains his only bowling innings in last six years.

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