Riyan Parag made his One-Day International (ODI) debut on Wednesday as India included him in the playing XI for the crucial third and final match against Sri Lanka at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. The 22-year-old received his maiden ODI cap from former India captain Virat Kohli.
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Parag, who earned his first India call-up following a stellar performance in this year's IPL, where he finished as the third-highest run-scorer with 573 runs in 14 innings, made his international debut during the recent T20I series against Zimbabwe. Despite not making a significant impact in Zimbabwe, Parag retained his spot in the squad for the series against Sri Lanka.
India also recalled wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, who last played an ODI in November 2022. KL Rahul and Arshdeep Singh were dropped from the playing XI to make way for Parag and Pant.
"Plenty to play for, we've been challenged in the last two matches. It's clear as to what we need to do with the bat and ball. We've addressed it - what we need to do as a group," Rohit Sharma said at the toss. "You got to give credit to the opposition, they played well and understood the position well. Another opportunity for us to correct. Two changes. We have Rishabh and Riyan Parag in place of KL and Arshdeep," he added.
India, trailing 1-0 in the series, must win the match to avoid a series defeat.
