So finally the moment has arrived, the Border Gavaskar Trophy begins with the first Test at Nagpur tomorrow. The series also has an extra incentive for India as a win here would give them an opportunity to fight for the World Test championship title once again and also will make the home team number 1 in the rankings. There is a lot at stake for India. The Indian team though over the past 12 months hasn’t had the greatest of time in Tests but again their home dominance cannot be questioned. The pitch at Nagpur has been the talking point over the past few days but again it should not be a surprise as to what sort of surface awaits the visiting Australian team. India who have Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel & Kuldeep Yadav in the squad for sure would be wishing for a track which would aid their strength. The Australian team though know what they would be facing but again apart for Nathan Lyon they don’t have much experience in the spin department.

The Test is all set to begin tomorrow and lets look at the possible XI India might field in the first Test.

Openers:

Rohit Sharma (C) is all set to return at the top of the order after missing quite a lot of cricket over the past 12 months. He has been India’s best batter at the top over the past 2 years in Tests. Rohit averages 45 in the last 13 Tests with 2 hundreds and being the captain his batting will be crucial for India in this series.

KL Rahul (VC) in all probability will return to the top along with Rohit Sharma. KL Rahul has not been in greatest forms over the past year and his career at the top of the order in Tests has been in question for a while now. His Test average is 35 after 45 Tests and with Shubman Gill breathing down his neck he for sure would want to get back to scoring some runs in this series. Being the vice-captain of the side him scoring runs will be a huge boost for the team and for Rahul himself.

Middle Order:

Cheteshwar Pujara will return to the number 3 spot in the batting order after being briefly dropped from the side. Pujara though seemed to have regained some sort of form and had a good time in Bangladesh. His ability to play spin will be crucial for India as the pitches are expected to turn.

Virat Kohli will come in at number four behind Pujara but their returns in Tests cannot be more contrasting. While Pujara seems to have regained some sort of form with the bat, Virat has largely struggled in this format. The series in Bangladesh saw him struggling against spin once again and there is a huge question mark over his career in Tests ahead of this series. Virat scoring runs will be a huge boost for India and his record against Australia will give hope for the fans and the team alike.

Shubman Gill might actually pip Surya Kumar Yadav in the middle order in the first Test in the absence of Shreyas Iyer. The kind of form Shubman Gill is in right now, it will be hard to keep him out of the playing XI. Even though Gill hasn’t played in the middle order for India in Tests yet, he might still get the nod ahead of SKY.

Wicket Keeper:

Few months ago there wouldn’t have been any discussions about this spot in Tests for India but again with Rishabh Pant missing the team need to pick a keeper between KS Bharat and Ishan Kishen. Bharat has been in the Indian squad as an understudy for Pant for a while and he might get the nod ahead of Ishan Kishen who hasn’t been in greatest of forms recently. In terms of their FC records there is hardly anything to separate them but again Bharat has more experience with keeping being crucial on these tracks he mostly will get the nod ahead of Kishen.

Spin Bowling/All-rounders

The return of Ravindra Jadeja will be a huge plus for India. Jadeja is not only one of the best spinners in the world, he also is one of the best all-rounders in the game. Jadeja missing has been a huge hole in the Test side and his return means that India will get back the balance which they had been missing in Tests.

Ravichandran Ashwin is all set to return as India’s premier spinner. While Ashwin’s ability in Asia cannot be questioned with the ball, his batting in Bangladesh is something which will give India some much needed cushion lower down the order.

The third spinner spot is something which will be fought out between Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel. Kuldeep Yadav has been in red hot form recently in all formats and does give India some variety as both the premier spinners for India are finger spinners as well but again you cannot fault Axar Patel’s Test record with the ball which is nothing short of extraordinary. But again there is a chance that India might pick Kuldeep just for a wrist spin option. This is probably the only position in the XI which might go either way.

Fast Bowlers:

With three spinners in the XI there is space only for 2 fast bowlers and it will surely be Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami. Shami is India’s most experienced pacer and Siraj has been in such a great form recently that it is hard to keep him out from any playing XI. Umesh Yadav in the squad will unfortunately miss out.

So that is my playing XI. On a Nagpur pitch which is supposed to be a dry surface aiding spin the above playing XI will probably offer India the best chance of putting one past the Aussies and get to a winning start. The absence of Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer would be a big loss for India but I think they just might have enough firepower to challenge Australia at home.

My Indian Playing XI: Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul (VC), C Pujara, V Kohli, S Gill, R Jadeja, KS Bharat, R Ashwin, K Yadav/A Patel, M Shami, M Siraj

Australian Likely X1: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Travis Head, Alex Carey (WK), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins (C), Nathan Lyon, M Starc, J Hazlewood