India will take on Australia in the first Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test at the Optus Stadium in Perth, starting on November 22. However, injury concerns and the absence of captain Rohit Sharma have left the visiting side with multiple gaps to fill in its starting lineup. With Rohit unavailable for the series opener, Jasprit Bumrah will take over as captain.
Who will open with Jaiswal?
Due to Rohit’s absence, KL Rahul was expected to open the innings alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal. However, with Shubman Gill ruled out of the match due to a thumb injury, Rahul might be moved to the number three position.
In that case, Abhimanyu Easwaran could receive his maiden Test cap and open the innings. Despite scoring only 36 runs in four innings for India A against Australia A, he remains the front-runner to make the starting XI.
Dhruv Jurel or Sarfaraz Khan?
Dhruv Jurel has strengthened his case after an impressive performance in the second unofficial Test against Australia A. The 23-year-old scored 80 and 68 in the two innings.
A place for Jurel might come at the expense of Sarfaraz Khan. Although the Mumbai batter recently scored a century against New Zealand, his dip in form after that ton and lack of experience in Australian conditions could work against him.
Who will debut — Harshit Rana or Nitish Kumar Rana?
Given the pace and bounce on offer in Perth, India is likely to include at least one pace-bowling all-rounder. Both Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy bowled extended spells during India’s intra-squad match at the WACA last week.
However, according to reports, Nitish is likely to edge out Harshit for a debut. Consequently, only one of Ravichandran Ashwin or Ravindra Jadeja is expected to play. Notably, during their last Test in Perth in 2018, India fielded a side without a spinner.
Who will be India’s third pacer?
Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah are set to feature in the first Test, but India is yet to finalise a replacement for Mohammed Shami. Prasidh Krishna and Akash Deep participated in the intra-squad match and are the leading candidates to fill the spot.
Given that Akash has been part of the squad in the last two series — against New Zealand and Bangladesh — he is expected to start.
INDIA PREDICTED XI
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Jasprit Bumrah (c), Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep.
INDIA SQUAD
Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Virat Kohli, Prasidh Krishna, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammad Shami, Rishabh Pant (wk), KL Rahul, Harshit Rana, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar.