The Indian cricket team will need to look for ways to bounce back after the terrible loss against Australia in Adelaide.
Virat Kohli on paternity leave, Mohammed Shami injured, Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar not fit, Rohit Sharma not available for the second Test due to compulsory quarantine - amidst all this, the Indian cricket team will need to look for ways to bounce back after the terrible loss against Australia in Adelaide.
With the absence of main players from the Indian squad, a lot will rely on the shoulders of now skipper Ajinkya Rahane.
With openers Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal not looking in their best and the batting form of wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha still not as expected, how will India manage to restrict Australia to a total that they can achieve and overcome with their new batting line-up for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne?
1. Who could replace Mohammed Shami?
)
With the injury ruling Mohammed Shami out of the series, he could be replaced by Ravindra Jadeja. The left-arm spinner could be an ideal option especially on the pitch in Melbourne.
The lack of pace on the pitch could make India consider going in with two spinners - Ravichandran Ashwin and Jadeja. In the absence of Shami, India could try their composition and play Jadeja.
The Men in Blue also have chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav as well, who had incidentally made his Test debut in 2017 under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane. For the last 18 months, Yadav’s form has taken a dip. The concern was that he was a touch too slow and efforts were made to get him to fizz the ball.
However, Yadav hasn’t completed the makeover process as the management would have liked, and Jadeja looks the better option. He could be handlful with the bat as well.
2. No pace back-up for Shami?
)
India does have pace backup in the form of Mohammed Siraj and Navdeep Saini who are fit and available. They could come into contention if the management feels the pitch has some pace to offer some seam movement.
When you talk about Saini, he started the tour with a torrid run in the first two ODIs but bounced back with a three-wicket haul in the day-night warm-up game in Sydney.
As for Siraj, the skilled swing bowler can move the red ball more than most in helpful conditions. If the team management decides to go with a pacer as a replacement, Siraj could get the nod for MCG as Saini would be more suitable for the pacier strip in Brisbane.
3. Could India make changes in their batting lineup?
)
India's trouble begins right from the top, especially opener Prithvi Shaw. The batsman survived just eight deliveries in Adelaide and is could be replaced by his U-19 World Cup teammate Shubman Gill.
The 21-year-old is yet to make his Test debut but looked fairly assured during the limited-overs leg and even in the tour games.
The other change the batting order could see would be the inclusion of KL Rahul who could come in for Kohli. Rahul hasn't sparkled in Tests but those failures were as an opener.
India will only hope that he can replicate his limited-overs form at the MCG, the very same venue he made his Test debut six seasons ago.
4. Will Wriddhiman Saha hold his spot or Rishabh Pant will come in?
)
Given his twin failures — scores of 9 and 4 — in Adelaide, Saha is the best 'keeper' in India, but his batting at home and abroad has not been up to the mark.
Saha has gone 13 innings without registering a half-century in Tests. While his glovework might be needed more in spin-friendly conditions at home, India would, however, look to boost their batting and include Rishabh Pant.
The Delhi wicketkeeper has the experience of playing Tests in Australia, and his century in the warm-up game in Sydney may help his case.
Also considering the "lack of intent" by batsmen - in Kohli’s words - in the second innings of Adelaide, Pant's aggression may come handy.
5. Rohit Sharma's availability
)
After having got the clearance from the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru and missing the entire limited-overs leg and the first Day/Night Test, Rohit Sharma travelled to Australia. Provided he is declared fit by the team's medical staff, Rohit could be back for the third and fourth Test.
However, seeing current opening batsmen, Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal's form even former Australia captain Ricky Ponting stated for the inclusion of Rohit Sharma as early as possible.
The two openers aggregated just 30 runs between them across the two innings which India lost by eight wickets. Of those 30, Shaw got just four.
"He (Rohit) will definitely play. He is a better Test player than Mayank Agarwal and Prithvi Shaw. If he is fit then he will straightaway slot at the top of the order," said Ponting while speaking on Channel 7.
Even former India opener and captain Sunil Gavaskar, told Channel 7, "Yes, yes, yes, he is definitely going to play in this Test series. He is already in Australia as far as I know and he might not be playing the second Test but he will be there for the third and the fourth."
