The Indian cricket team will continue its experiments to figure out the final pieces of a jigsaw puzzle called the ‘World Cup squad’ when a five-match ODI series against Australia starts in Hyderbad on Saturday.

The team is slowly moving into the World Cup mode and even a 0-2 loss in the just-concluded T20 series won’t see any shift in plans as far as skipper Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri are concerned.

There will be at least four players for whom the series will be like a ‘pre test’, a good score ensuring that they get ‘admit cards’ for the board exams.

The four players in question are KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Vijay Shankar and Siddarth Kaul, who are fighting for two available slots in that UK bound 15-member squad.

With Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah being automatic choices, Kaul will probably get two games to prove his worth.

But Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri are not likely to tinker with the core team too much as a comprehensive series win is always an acceptable proposition.

With the seasoned Ambati Rayudu, veteran all-rounder Kedar Jadhav and the wily Shami back in the Indian set-up, the ODI series will be a completely different challenge for Aaron Finch and his men.

Also the formidable wrist spin duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal will be operating in tandem during those middle overs to choke the run flow.

Bumrah, set to be India’s premier bowler in England, may be rested for a game or two depending on India’s position in the series.

The Australian team, buoyed by the maiden T20 triumph over India, will be eager to continue the momentum it has gained.