These are the men who will tour Australia this summer.
1. Mayank Agarwal
Agarwal’s meteoric rise in Test cricket since his debut in Melbourne in December 2018 has gone unnoticed. Three big knocks at home against South Africa, including a double ton, showed his knack for big runs, albeit at home. He looked very fluent on debut in Australia and will have his work cut out for him against the likes of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.
2. Rohit Sharma
He is a semi-bolter. Sharma boasts the second best ODI record of any current cricketer in the world, but he is not the finished article in Test cricket. Like Agarwal, he piled up big runs in the Indian home summer against the South Africans and Bangladesh after being moved from his customary middle-order spot in Tests to open. It will be a big challenge at the top of the order in Australia against the cartel. If he opens, this tour will surely show us whether he has the credentials to be a high quality opener in Tests, like the ODI legend he is.
3. Cheteshwar Pujara
He had a golden tour last time in Australia. Pujara single handedly ground Australia into boredom and submission with large, large knocks in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney. Pujara will be looking forward to batting on some pristine wickets this summer. If he’s not troubled at the start of his innings, expect him to go very large again.
4. Virat Kohli – captain
Who else but him? He will look forward to battling with Steve Smith for the crown of cricket’s premier batsmen. He will relish being the Australian public’s enemy number one again and his fiery on-field antics will add to the drama. In comparison to Kohli’s monster 2014-15 tour, a return of one hundred and one 50 was a bit deflating and reflected his struggles against Nathan Lyon. As always, he is most dangerous under pressure and in the face of the Australian opponents.
(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
5. Ajinkya Rahane
An underrated player, Rahane has long been the glue of the Indian middle order. He has a solid technique, however he has had some struggles against moving balls in England and New Zealand.
6. Hanuma Vihari
He is India’s old-school cricketer alongside Pujara. He can open too, but his only flaw in Test cricket to date is his dealing with the short ball. The cartel should dig up their files for Vihari and bombard him to see whether he has adapted to chin music.
7. Rishabh Pant
He has fallen out of India’s pecking order after poor performances in all formats. However Pant has fond memories of the last tour of Australia, with a mammoth knock in Sydney. He is a decent gloveman. This tour will show whether Pant has recovered from his decline.
8. Ravindra Jadeja
In Australia, it is likely India will play one front-line spinner. Jadeja was handy in the final two Tests in 2018-19 and is capable of scoring well. It will be interesting to see how he adapts on different wickets.
9. Ishant Sharma
A very underrated bowler, Sharma possesses pace, accuracy and swing, which will definitely ask questions of the Aussie top order. Be wary of him against left handers.
10. Jasprit Bumrah
He is the main man for the Indian attack. He had a sensational series last time out. Enthralling battles against Smith, David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne await.
11. Mohammed Shami
He has become very consistent for India in the last few years. He has a nasty bouncer and good, accurate pace.
Tanmoy Kar
Guest
India will not do well in this Series as they will be going straight to Australia after playing IPL, hence most of the players (except Pujara and Vihari) will be in T20 mode.
Paul
Roar Guru
In close games, I think the strength of the current Indian side, becomes its weakness and one of the main "culprits" is their captain. India plays its cricket with a lot of passion & emotion, which is perfect when a side is going well. When faced with a serious challenge however, that passion needs to be bridled and coolness & calmness under pressure are the main requirements. India under Dhoni had the best of both worlds, but Kohli is almost passion personified. The team as whole needs someone to keep them calm & focused. I look at how the West Indies won that First Test in England recently and Jason Holder was the one who provided that calmness. I think India and Australia are on par talent wise, but of games are close I'd back Australia to manage pressure better, unless either Kohli or another member of the team can provide that coolness to manage pressure.
Unders
Roar Pro
Good craic there Paul- everyone knows there is a lot of talent in this Indian team, but I have to be a realist. In England 2 years ago, India were very competitive in 4 of the 5 tests and I was quite happy that they put up such brave fights. However, I thought about it the other day, India could have definitely won at least 2 more games in that series at Edgbaston and Southampton, losing by 31 and 60 runs respectively. English and Aussie commentators talk about winning 'sessions' and rightly so- India perhaps were hard done by by a 4-1 trouncing, given they fought gallantly in most sessions and won a few. But the knock out and decisive sessions were won more frequently by the English which is why they won that series. Another issue is India have thrown away so many games when chasing 4th innings totals of 180-250. Nowadays this is a tough ask in most countries in all fairness. But in 2018, in SA, England (twice) and Perth, they never looked close to chasing down modest totals. I don't know how much this means, but that SA team they played in 2018 that beat India and Australia were distinctively average; and if given the Australia tour happens in early 2021, Australia should get revenge for that series. On the other hand, I am quietly backing India's pace battery- Ishant Sharma has perhaps changed a lot of people's previous animated and comical views of him into a seriously underrated bowler. Shami has been very consistent and is prepared to go around the park for wickets. From my memory, Smith, Warner and Labuschagne have little or no experience of playing Bumrah with a red ball in hand. I'm sure Smith will find a way to counter his orthodox style but it could be the Aussie bats take some time to adjust to him. Either way, I cannot wait to see test cricket down under after a brilliant English test summer.
Paul
Roar Guru
I thought yours was a terrific comment until your last couple of sentences, Rueben. I think you might be selling Kohli's boys a bit short. India is a powerful team regardless where they play. Naturally as an Aussie, I'm hoping for an home team series win, but there are so many good players in your team, I just can't see Australia winning "comprehensively". I think this will be a 2-1 series result and could go either way.
Unders
Roar Pro
Good to hear from you again Paul. I think the only similar player within the Indian test set up is Vihari, he's the only old-school, abrasive player with the similar mindset to Pujara. However, he's not a no.3, more of a no.6 for the tourists. Therefore, the alternative at 3 if Pujara fails may likely be KL Rahul, if the openers are in good nick. Rahul's technique has definitely improved as seen in T20's. Despite that, Rahul is a much more positive and intentful player. We will find out soon....
dat
Roar Rookie
Personally feel Ashwin has improved alot as a bowler of late when it comes to bowling away from Asia. He averages 30 in his last 8 tests in SENA(Sa,Eng,Nz,Aus) countries,which is alot better than i would expect from either Jadeja or Yasir and might be comparable with Lyon in that period. What works against him will be his batting form which has dipped a lot of late and his recurring fitness issues. Jadeja meanwhile is india's best fielder and has worked alot on his batting ,so as long as he can restrict the run rate and get a wicket or 2 he would likely be favored over ashwin like you said. Right now it's kinda tricky to predict india's full squad for the test series, as i see the possibility of Rahul making a come back over either Shaw or Gill, Umesh getting in despite constantly proving he is only good at home (avg 24 at home vs 42 away),Kuldeep being a possibility because of his 5fer against Australia, Any of the consistent domestics performers getting a shot (After the lose in NZ Virat did say it might be time to test out a few of the young guns) and obviously anyone being out of action due to injured sustained during the IPL.
dat
Roar Rookie
I wont rule out KL Rahul either. Back when he was struggling to score even double digit scores consistently, (in any format) BCCI solution was to drop him for a couple of games and send him to play one 4 day game at home against England lions ,where he got a couple of 80 odd scores which immediately brought him back into the national squad. Given that he is one of Virat's best mates and at least now has great numbers in white ball cricket and 4 day fixtures in the ranji trophy, it wont be long before they consider picking him for tests again.
dat
Roar Rookie
If it was a couple of years ago Murali Vijay or Rahane would have been the likely candidates. Right now it's hard to say, given the former is not likely to play for India again and Rahane being inconsistent since then. Agarwal and Vihari both have some potential to play that role but Pujara is still the most bankable person to fill that role.
Unders
Roar Pro
Even though I’m an Indian fan I think this team will get a beating down under. This is the real I think is most likely playing, not the one I’d pick. Their batting in New Zealand was severely exposed against the moving ball. Their bowling has a good shot at troubling the Aussies, but a lot of their success revolves around Kohli and Pujara making large knocks.
Saran Thiraviam
Roar Rookie
Nice one.... But I reckon you've left out Wriddhiman Saha.... Remember Rishabh Pant in the last Australian Test series came in as a replacement of Saha, who suffered from injury by that time... So it's going to be Saha or Rahul who is going to sport the glove...
Unders
Roar Pro
Very true- Rahul’s limited over form has been awesome of late and he looks a lot more technically sound. I still feel Rohit will be given a go. Vihari for now has not shown any bad form despite his struggle with the short ball.
Unders
Roar Pro
I think either he or Rohit will open. Shaw in my opinion is still a novice and Sharma I think will be given a go at the top due to his series against South Africa at the top. If he fails, I think Shaw will definitely be on speed dial
Rueben Gopaul
Guest
Good to see you again Paul- Pujara has been very average since that tour, plus he’ll probably face a more in form and confident Aussie attack. To my knowledge, I don’t think India have a like for like replacement for Pujara. Vihari is the only other player who plays attritional, hard yard cricket and has been decent in the middle order. If Pujara fails I think Rahul will likely notch up at no.3 providing he doesn’t open. Rahul is much more positive and attacking, but watching from T20 (which isn’t too meaningful) his technique looks a lot more solid and possibly adaptable. But at the minute, no matter me being India fan, at the minute I think this Indian team will be on the receiving end of a comprehensive loss to Australia. :sick: We will wait and see
Diamond Jackie
Roar Rookie
A great series looms. India won the key moments when they last visited but with Smith/Warner/Marnus we should prevail this time.
Gee
Roar Rookie
Good looking squad. With Smith and Warner back normal service should resume. Also thanks for the article, we haven't had one about the Indian team or player for a couple of hours :)
AREH
Roar Guru
Rahul at the top might be a safer bet, but I suspect Rohit will be given first shot. His big scores have come only at home, and the clear gap between home and away is well documented. The handful of tests in Australia have seen plenty of strong starts without kicking on. As threatening as the Australian attack is, he looms dangerous if able to survive the early stages.
Nick
Roar Guru
I'd be surprised if Rohit Sharma plays more than 2 tests this series. It's hard to believe someone could be worse than David Warner away from home, but Sharma is such a flat track bully he makes Warner look like Graeme Pollock. He is an absolute liability away from India. It would be a grave mistake to pick him. Shaw, if fit and in the good books should be the opener they try and turn into a long term prospect.
Patrick
Roar Pro
I think this is pretty much on the money, although Prithvi Shaw or Shubman Gill may put pressure on Rohit Sharma, who struggles away from home. With Ashwin having performed poorly in Australia in the past, I'd back Jadeja to be selected, whilst I'd bank on Pant over Saha based on the pattern of recent selections. They same to play five bowlers and Saha at home (with Jadeja at 6), and four bowlers and Pant away to bolster the batting in foreign conditions- quite smart in my opinion.
Targa
Guest
I'd be tempted to put KL Rahul in there somewhere. He's a quality player. All of those top 6 except Rohit Sharma (who was injured) played in the test series in test and struggled with seam movement and bounce. There will be less movement in Oz, but even more bounce.
Peter Farrar
Roar Pro
Looks good although potentially a couple of weaknesses the Australians may capitalise on. I wonder how this team compares to the side that last toured here. Despite the series loss to New Zealand are India in a golden era with their best ever team?