Team India have begun their preparations for the IND vs SA Test series, starting on December 26 in Centurion. The Rohit Sharma-led Indian side will be eyeing their first series victory in Rainbow Nation. Ahead of the first Test, cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar picked his ideal India Playing XI.
While the pitch is expected to assist the pacers, Gavaskar went with 3 pacers and 2 spinners for the Centurion Test.
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While speaking on Star Sports’ show, Gavaskar said: “My Playing XI is going to be very simple. The openners will be a [Yashasvi] Jaiswal and captain Rohit Sharma. Shubman Gill number three, number four [Virat] Kohli. Number five KL Rahul, number six Shreyas Iyer or five and six that can move here and there. After that it will be Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin. And then the three fast bowlers, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj”.
Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar picked Shardul Thakur and Prasidh Krishna over Ravichandran Ashwin and Mukesh Kumar.
“If it’s a typical Centurion pitch, then I am looking at India going with five bowlers, four seamers and one spinner. Shardul Thakur will be my fourth seamer with Prasidh Krishna, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj being the other three”, Manjrekar said.