The IND vs AUS Test series is upon us, and the first Test at Perth begins on November 22. And before that there are a few injury concerns already. The likes of Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, and KL Rahul Rahul were on the receiving end in the intra-squad match, while Shubman Gill is almost ruled out due to a thumb injury. Plus, there is no clarity as to whether Rohit Sharma will be able to play the first Test or not, due to the birth of his second child.
IND vs AUS, Perth Test
All this combined, and the poor form of certain players is the major highlight of this tour Down Under. But still, Gautam Gambhir has to come up with the smartest XI, if not the best one. Taking a cue from what happened in the IND A vs AUS A match earlier this month, pacer Prasidh Krishna should be a must-have in this team, who is going to miss Mohammed Shami in the Perth Test.
Although the lanky Karnataka pacer might not be equipped to fill Shami’s shoes, but his 10 wickets in IND A vs AUS A matches instilled the belief, that he can do the job in Australia. At Perth, the quickest and bounciest wicket in the world, he might be able to trouble the Aussie batters even more. And in comparison with Siraj, he has been way better.
Mohammed Siraj & Sarfaraz Khan Not Needed
In his last 7 Tests, Siraj has only 14 wickets to his name, and his place in the team isn’t justified. Then on the other hand, there is Sarfaraz Khan, who has been rather poor, except for his maiden ton vs NZ in the first Test. Since then, he has struggled against spin, and in match-simulation in Australia, against pacers as well.
In his last 4 innings, Sarfaraz Khan has returned with scores of 11, 9, 0, and 1. On the flip side, Dhruv Jurel was excellent in the IND A series. Not only he averages 63 in the three Tests he has played, but returned with scores of 80 & 68 in the AUS A match in Melbourne.
