Team India will take on England in the first ODI of the three-match series at the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Stadium in Nagpur on Thursday, February 6. After a 4-1 series win against England, the Men in Blue have gotten into ODI mode as they prepare for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025, scheduled to take place from February 19 to March 9. Several senior players, including the likes of skipper Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and others will return to international duties after playing the second round of the ongoing Ranji Trophy season for their respective state teams. While other players, who were part of the T20I leg of the white-ball series against England, have rejoined the squad for the ODI series against Jos Buttler. Also read: IND vs ENG: Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli sweats out in nets ahead of India's first ODI vs England (WATCH)The Men in Blue will play the first ODI match since August 2024, where they lost 0-2 to Sri Lanka in the three-match series. With 17 players in the India squad, who will make it to the final playing XI for the opening match of the ODI series against England in Nagpur?The top three of the batting line-up, which includes Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli is expected to remain unchanged as Team India management has been sticking to the same combination over the last couple of years, providing stability in the top-order. The opening pair of Rohit and his new deputy Gill has scored 1734 runs together in partnership, including five centuries and 11 fifties, at an average of 69.36 in 26 matches. With Shubman Gill likely to open the innings with Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, who is part of the India ODI squad, may have to  wait to make his debut in the shorter format of the game. The opening combination of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill have turned out to be successful over the last couple of years, thus team management is likely to go with them as openers.  The No.3 has been a fixed spot for Virat Kohli over the last 15 years in the ODI format. The former India opener has consistently performed well while batting at No.3, making it his most successful position. The 36-year-old has amassed 11875 runs, including 43 centuries, at an impressive average of 61.06 in 231 matches. Amid the discussion on the probable playing XI for the first ODI against England, the big question is whether KL Rahul and Mohammed Shami will be included in the team. KL Rahul has been included in the squad as the second-choice wicketkeeper, with Rishabh Pant as the first choice. The Karnataka batter did wicketkeeping duties in the ODI World Cup 2023, but the return of Pant will see him donning the gloves in the ODI cricket. However, the toss up will be between KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer as the former returned to the Indian team for the ODI series against England and the Champions Trophy 2025. Given Iyer’s performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, where he aggregated 325 runs, including two centuries, at an impressive average of 325 in five matches, Team India management is expected to give a chance to him in the first ODI. Talking about Mohammed Shami, he is expected to make it to the playing XI as he is the most experienced pacer in the squad. Since Jasprit Bumrah has been ruled out of the ODI series due to back injury, an experienced pacer like Shami is important in the team. The 33-year-old made his return to Team India in the recently concluded T20I series against India. He picked three wickets in the fifth T20I at Wankhede Stadium. Mohammed Shami is likely to lead the pace attack alongside Arshdeep Singh. India’s middle-order is unexpected to face any conundrum as Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja are expected to take the No. 6 and No. 7 spots, providing the team with both depth and all-rounder capabilities. With Jadeja returning for the ODI series, Axar Patel may not get a chance to play until and unless team management decides to rest the former.The young all-rounder Washington Sundar is expected to make it to the playing XI as Team India management will be willing to try him as an additional spin-bowling option alongside Ravindra Jadeja, especially considering the conditions at VCA in Nagpur. Varun Chakravarthy was added to the squad on the back of his brilliant performance in the T20I series against England, where he was highest wicket-taker with 14 wickets. However, the Tamil Nadu bowler is unlikely to make his ODI debut as Team India management is likely to pick Kuldeep Yadav into the playing XI. Kuldeep Yadav has been out of action since October 2024, missing the Test series against Bangladesh, New Zealand and Australia. He underwent surgery for sports hernia and he managed to recover from surgery in time before the ODI series against England. Also read: BCCI asks Rohit Sharma to communicate his future plans after Champions Trophy 2025: ReportRohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill (WK), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh