Border-Gavaskar Trophy: Here is how India's battling lineup might look in the first test

The first match of the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy series between India and Australia is to be played in Perth from November 22. However, there are many questions regarding what will be the combination of the Indian team's batting lineup. 

Also Read: Border-Gavaskar Trophy Head-to-head stats: Which team has won the most between Australia and India?

After Rohit Sharma is out of this test match, the captaincy will be in the hands of Jasprit Bumrah. In such a situation, Bumrah will have to brainstorm with head coach Gautam Gambhir as to how the playing 11 will be. Notably, the Indian team's 5-match Test series against Australia is important for reaching the final of the World Test Championship (WTC).

Here's how India's batting lineup is shaping up for the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Rahul will open with Jaiswal

KL Rahul got injured during the India-A practice match by a rising delivery from Prasidh Krishna. But now there is news about Rahul that he has completely recovered. So Rahul can open with Yashasvi Jaiswal. At the same time, the chances of Shubman Gill playing in the Perth Test are negligible.  Because he has a fracture in his left thumb. Gill will now be able to play in the second Test starting on December 6 in Adelaide. Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli, and Sarfaraz Khan will be in the middle order.

Who will take charge at number 3?

In the absence of Rohit, the responsibility of opening the innings may be on the shoulders of Jaiswal and KL Rahul.  In this challenging series, Virat Kohli would like to finish at number four. In this sequence, Virat has scored 25 out of 29 centuries in his Test career. So, Devdutt Padikkal or Sarfaraz Khan will have to come at number three. After this, Dhruv Jurel and Rishabh Pant at numbers 6 and 7 can strengthen Team India.

Also Read: Which player has played the most games in Border-Gavaskar Trophy? 8th player in the list might shock you

Jurel can play as specialist batsman 

Wicketkeeper-batsman Dhruv Jurel impressed everyone in the match against Australia A. He scored 80 and 68 runs in two innings at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). After this, He can play as a specialist batsman in the team. Former head coach of Team India Ravi Shastri has also advocated this. Pant will be seen wicketkeeping in the match. 

India's probable playing XI for the Perth Test:

Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Jasprit Bumrah (c), Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep.

Indian squad for Australia tour: 

Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Virat Kohli, Prasidh Krishna, Ravichandran Ashwin, Rishabh Pant (wk), KL Rahul, Harshit Rana, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar.