Anil Kumble’s Playing XI for Melboune Test: Former Indian captain has picked a surprising Playing XI for the Boxing Day Test.
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With Australia winning the second Test at Perth by 147 runs, the four-match series is 1-1 level at the moment. Both the team would be looking to force a result in the Melbourne Test in a bid to secure their position going into the New Year’s Test.
Poor form of some of the key players along with injuries to some of the other players have made selection a daunting task for the visitors. Despite touring with a 19-member squad, India are still in a spot of bother with respect to who will play where come this December 26.
In which appears to be a case for spoilt with options, India will look to try their best to make sure that they don’t perform another selection blunder just as in Perth.
Former India captain and coach and legendary leg-spinner Anil Kumble was recently vocal about his team combination regarding the third Test of the ongoing India’s tour of Australia.
Kumble opined that opening batsman Mayank Agarwal should be handed a Test debut at Melbourne. During a conversation with Cricketnext, Kumble the move will bring some freshness into the squad, chiefly at the top of the order.
The 48-year old further suggested that middle-order batsman Hanuma Vihari should be made to open the innings. In which will be an inexperienced opening pair, it will replace the out-of-form Lokesh Rahul and Murali Vijay.
Kumble also spoke at odds regarding playing a specialist batsman at No. 6. He was of the opinion that India should take the field with two spinners in Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja and three specialist fast bowlers in Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami and Ishant Sharma.
Anil Kumble’s Playing XI for Melboune Test
1) Mayank Agarwal 2) Hanuma Vihari 3) Cheteshwar Pujara 4) Virat Kohli (c) 5) Ajinkya Rahane 6) Rishabh Pant (wk) 7) Ravichandran Ashwin 8) Ravindra Jadeja 9) Ishant Sharma 10) Mohammad Shami 11) Jasprit Bumrah
Read some of the latest Twitter reactions on the Indian team below:
Australia have added a young member, Archie Schiller to their squad for the third Test of the series against India. He had earlier practised with the team ahead of the 1st Test in Adelaide.
“Vinsah kaal viprit budhi”@BCCI @ICC #3rdtest#indvsAus pic.twitter.com/VzVPeuZcI0— shaik siraz (@shaiksiraz7) December 23, 2018
@ImRo45 and Mayank should open for next test match. @BCCI should give rohit at least 8-10 test match as opener after that rohit will be permanently IN or OUT from test team.@imVkohli should leave their ego & choose best team India.
#BoxingDayTest @vikrantgupta73 @bhogleharsha
— Siddharth Singh (@Siddhar40188847) December 23, 2018
In PICS: Team India’s practice session ahead of ‘Boxing Day’ Test against Australia at #Melbourne #INDvAUS #BoxingDayTestMatch @imVkohli https://t.co/ZX8ieaD6uv pic.twitter.com/M7tvSGE5W1
— Newsroom Post (@NewsroomPostCom) December 23, 2018
This is why we need a team director who controls head coach and the whole team.I think Shastri doesn’t deserve to be India coach he is just a waste material.Ask Kohli to step down as Test captain if we are unable to win the series in Aus with this bowling against weak AUS.
— Ravi Kumar Ch (@ImRaviChejarla) December 23, 2018
