India Playing 11 vs Australia: The Virat Kohli-led team has surprisingly announced the Playing XI on the eve of the first Test in Adelaide.
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Putting all murmurs and speculations to rest, India have announced their Playing XI for the first Test of the ongoing India’s tour of Australia. Set to be played as a day-night fixture with the pink ball at the Adelaide Oval, the match will be captain Virat Kohli’s only Test on this tour.
The three key areas which had allured plentiful debates in the last week were Mayank Agarwal’s opening partner, wicket-keeper batsman and the fourth bowler.
Despite scoring more than double the runs scored by Prithvi Shaw in four innings of the tour matches, batsman Shubman Gill has been denied a Test debut as the visitors have stuck with their Playing XI from their last Test match played against New Zealand more than nine months ago.
In a way, the decision is a fair one as Shaw averages 55.83 in his four Test appearances and had scored a stroke-filled 54 (64) in his last Test in Christchurch.
On the other hand, wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant hasn’t been able to retain his place despite scoring an unbeaten century in the second tour match. Wriddhiman Saha, who had scored an unbeaten half-century and two ducks in three innings, has got the nod instead and will play his first Test since India’s inaugural pink-ball match against Bangladesh in Kolkata last year.
India Playing 11 vs Australia
While the fourth bowler wasn’t that much of a concern, there were suggestions of India playing a four-man seam attack which hasn’t happened as spinner Ravichandran Ashwin will resume his role of India’s first-choice overseas spinner.
India XI for Adelaide Test – 1) Mayank Agarwal 2) Prithvi Shaw 3) Cheteshwar Pujara 4) Virat Kohli (c) 5) Ajinkya Rahane 6) Hanuma Vihari 7) Wriddhiman Saha (wk) 8) Ravichandran Ashwin 9) Umesh Yadav 10) Mohammed Shami 11) Jasprit Bumrah.
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