The Indian team has recently been rocked with injuries, not allowing them to play a settled XI in Test cricket. But what would the team look like when every player is fit and available for selection?
Head coach Rahul Dravid recently spoke about the luxury of having a full squad considering the growing number of injuries in the Indian team. Since Dravid took over as coach, India have played 23 Tests, with Ashwin playing the most matches with 20. A total of 33 cricketers played for India during this period, but only four played more than 15 matches. Virat Kohli, Mohammed Siraj, Shubman Gill.
India’s first appearance under Dravid was at home against New Zealand, but several senior players were absent. Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja then missed the tour to South Africa, while the Indian captain also missed the fifth Test against England in July 2022 and the series in Bangladesh at the end of 2022. The latter also led to the absence of Jasprit Bumrah. He was in the midst of back rehabilitation at the time.
As of 2023, India will miss Rishabh Pant. He isstill recovering from multiple injuries from a traffic accident. India are playing the ongoing series against England without Kohli and Mohammed Shami, with Rahul missing the remaining three matches. India too had to do without Bumrah and Jadeja at various stages.
India’s best Test XI if all players are fit
Rohit Sharma (captain)
Rohit will be leading the team and is an integral part of the team. Since the beginning of 2022, Rohit has scored 987 runs with 300 runs, two of which came in Test conditions. Last year against Nagpur, his 120 runs on a difficult surface contributed to India’s big win, and against England in Rajkot, he scored 131 runs to help India recover from his 33-3 deficit. .
Yashasvi Jaiswal
The opener has made a great start in his Test career, breaking several records. Just eight matches ago, Jaiswal had scored a double century in two consecutive Tests. He holds the record for most in a series with six. He needs 120 runs in the final Test against India to break the record for most runs scored by an Indian in a series. He is good at reading situations and can split innings accordingly.
Yashasvi Jaiswal needs 120 more runs in Dharamsala to become the most successful Indian opener in a Test series.
He has only played 8 games. #INDvsENG Image. twitter.com/G5MdukHzPP
– Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) 27. February 2024
Shubman Gill
Gill was under observation ahead of the England series after a long dry spell. He hasn’t averaged 30 runs in this format for the last three years and might not have even made it into the XI if India had a regular player. But in the last three games he showed why he belongs. He achieved a crucial hundred in the second Test but narrowly missed out by one more in the third. His 52-match unbeaten run in Ranchi after India found themselves in trouble showed his mettle. He only hit two boundaries in the knockout match, but not until victory was in sight.
Virat Kohli
Kohli bounced back to his normal form in 2023, averaging 55.91. Although his pitching troubled the Indian batsmen in December and his January in South Africa, he is in a class of his own and will always be a substitute when available.
KL Rahul overseas/Dhruv Jurel in India
Rahul enjoyed his century as a middle-order batsman in South Africa, proving his ability to become great in this format, but injuries and inconsistency were the biggest obstacles. Rahul has performed well in hundreds of Tests in Australia, England and South Africa and will start ahead of other young players in India’s overseas tour.
But in India, Rahul has averaged 41.24 in 17 Tests and has not scored a hundred since 2016 and has not played a Test at home for four years. In India, Dhruv Jhuler, Sarfaraz Khan and Shreyas Iyer are the candidates vying for his position. Iyer was recently dropped from the squad despite excelling against spinners and Sarfaraz has an incredible first-class record, but the maturity that Jurrell showed at Ranchi means that India will He will probably be in the starting eleven before the other players. However, the sample size is small.
Rishabh Pant
Six no-looks, reverse sweeps against experienced pacers, bold whip shots against spinners, fearless approach in all conditions even in the 90s. From chatting incessantly behind a stump to humming his Spider-Man theme song – need any more reason why he’s Eleven’s first choice?
Ravindra Jadeja
Jadeja is arguably the best Test all-rounder of the century and has often brought India out of trouble in recent years. His averages so far in 2020 are 37.96 with the bat and 22.88 with the ball. He is the only player in the same period to have achieved 1,000 runs and 15 wickets, and no other player has averaged more than his 10.62.
Shardul Thakur overseas/R Ashwin in India
Ashwin is a natural player in India, but when he tours abroad, his batting ability means that he often has to play against spinners in Jadeja in Indian matches. India has brought in Thakur to maintain batting depth. He is also a force seamer, a role Hardik Pandya would play when his body was still fit to play in Tests.
Mohammed Siraj overseas/Kuldeep Yadav in India
Siraj has pace and is relentless on his day, currently India’s third most experienced pacer and the third fast specialist from Asia along with Bumrah and Shami. But he leaves space for Kuldeep as India usually doesn’t need three fast bowlers. He overtook Axar Patel, who has had a bright start to his Test career but has not been in the spotlight lately. His batting motion also improved rapidly.
Mohammed Shami
Shami was an underrated Test bowler at home. Despite the spinners wreaking havoc, Shami claimed that in his 21 Tests he took 76 wickets at an average of 22.10 and a strike rate of 42.6. There is no other easy Indian dish that comes close to this at home. It is a must-have item both domestically and internationally.
Jasprit Bumrah
Another player who just needs to be there, like Pants.
India’s best Test XI at home
Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Dhruv Jhuler, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah
India’s best Test XI overseas
Rohit Sharma、Yashasvi Jaiswal、Shubman Gill、Virat Kohli、KL Rahul、Rishab Pant、Ravindra Jadeja、Shardul Thakur、Mohammed Siraj、Mohammed Shami、Jasprit Bumrah
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