Australia vs India: BCCI announces the squad for the four-match Test series

Team India is set to square off against the Australian cricket team for a 4-match Test series starting on December 6, 2018. The series will be played throughout the Aussie summer and is a very crucial one for the team. With more than a month left for this series, the selectors have already announced the squad for all the four Tests.

There are some surprise picks in this squad. India’s limited-overs vice-captain made it in while his partner Shikhar Dhawan faced the axe for this series as well. All-rounder Hardik Pandya failed to make it into the final cut after he injured himself during the Asia Cup 2018. Parthiv Patel has been picked in the squad as the secondary wicket-keeper.

Vijay back in the mix

Also, Murali Vijay is back in the side and he could well be opening the innings for the team. Young sensation Prithvi Shaw has got another chance which is quite pleasing. He would mostly be fighting it out with KL Rahul for the opening slot. The rest of the side looks as solid as ever with Pujara at three, Kohli at four and Rahane at five.

Hanuma Vihari, with some strong domestic performances, will take the role of a batting all-rounder in the 18-man squad. Both Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, along with Kuldeep Yadav are in the squad as the spin options. Keeping the workload in mind, the selectors have picked five good fast-bowling options. These include Mohammad Shami, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

The 18-member squad for the Australia Tests:

Virat Kohli (C), M Vijay, KL Rahul, Prithvi Shaw, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant (wk), Parthiv Patel (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

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