India vs West Indies Preview: Shaw to debut; Agarwal to wait

India vs West Indies Preview: India have announced a 12-member squad for the first Test against West Indies at Rajkot.

In what has come out as an atypical practice on the end of the Indian team, they have announced a 12-member squad for the first Test against West Indies. Previously, the Indian team was known for not revealing their playing XI until the toss.

By shortlisting the squad, the team management have made a couple of things clear. The first and foremost is that regarding Mumbai’s 18-year right-hand batsman Prithvi Shaw, who is set to make his Test debut at Rajkot. An attacking opening batsman, as quoted by vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane, Shaw will face the new ball alongside Lokesh Rahul.

The second point which the Indian team has made clear is regarding the their strategy for they will field five batsmen, as many specialist bowlers and a wicket-keeper in the first Test. As a result, Hanuma Vihari, who scored a maiden half-century on debut against England at The Oval, will have to sit out, at least for the first Test.

The top two contenders for the list of the fifth bowler are Kuldeep Yadav and uncapped Shardul Thakur. Looking at the conditions ahead, whether India will opt for a third spinner or a third pacer, only time will tell.

Ravichandran Ashwin, who passed the fitness Test to be named in the series, is highly likely to resume his all-rounder-sort of role as he would mostly bat at No. 6 ahead of wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant.

Umesh Yadav, who played a lone Test in India’s eight Test matches abroad this year, will play only his third of 2018. Among the players who have been left out are Vihari, Mayank Agarwal and Mohammed Siraj. There is a possibility of them being released to play for their states in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Below is India’s 12-member squad for the first Test:

1) Lokesh Rahul 2) Prithvi Shaw 3) Cheteshwar Pujara 4) Virat Kohli 5) Ajinkya Rahane 6) Rishabh Pant 7) Ravichandran Ashwin 8) Ravindra Jadeja 9) Kuldeep Yadav 10) Umesh Yadav 11) Mohammad Shami 12) Shardul Thakur

This unexpected announcement allured a lot of instant reactions on social media platform Twitter. Read some of them below: