As per the report published in The Indian Express, fast bowler Harshit Rana and all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy will earn their Test caps for India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy’s first match set for Friday. The report went on to state that both Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja are not playing in the first Test match to be held in Perth. Instead, Washington Sundar is anticipated to come in as the spin option. In the batting department, it has been predicted that KL Rahul, opening the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal, will be at the crease along with Devdutt Padikkal batting at No. 3 because Shubman Gill is out of the picture due to injury.
Indian Team captain Rohit Sharma is back on Australian soil as he joins the rest of the team in Perth on November 24, which is the third day of the ongoing first test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series. Rohit, however, did not manage to leave with the rest of the squad, as he and his wife were recently blessed with a second son, on the 15th of November, which was the reason for the lapse.
The Indian team, on the other hand, made its way to Australia in three sections between the 9th and the 11th of November, and so the Indian Captain decided to stay in India for the entire family experience. In any case, he is expected to arrive very late for the first Test match scheduled at the Optus Stadium in Perth which commences on Friday. Nevertheless, the Indian captain will be present for the second Test match at the Adelaide Oval, which will take place between December 6 and 10.
Jasprit Bumrah, the vice-captain in the squad, will take charge of the Indian team for the Perth Test and with Pat Cummins captaining the Australian side, it will be one of the rare instances where two bowlers have taken on the mantle of leading their respective teams in a Border-Gavaskar Trophy series.
As part of his lead-up to the Adelaide Test, Rohit will also take part in a two-day day-night warm-up fixture which pits India A against Prime Minister’s XI rohit on November 30 and December 1, at Manuka Oval in Canberra. The rough outline of the match says that Rohit would be able to adjust to the Australian environment and more importantly, get back into shape, as stated by a report in Cricbuzz.
There had been rampant speculation in the cricketing circles over Rohit’s late arrival to Australia. Trouble was already with the team because several players were absent due to injuries – Shubhman Gill had a thumb injury and Jasprit Bumrah was the acting captain, so there were worries when the captain would come in.
India Likely XI for 1st Test against Australia: KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Paddikal, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Reddy, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah (captain).
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