India after losing the first Test against England in Hyderabad, made a decent comeback in Visakhapatnam to level the Test series 1-1. The 3rd Test match in Rajkot will be very crucial for both the sides as the team winning this match will have an edge to win the five-match series.
Here, in this article we will have a look at what could be India’s possible XI for 3rd Test against England in Rajkot in the absence of star player like Virat Kohli.
Openers: Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal
Yashasvi Jaiswal is expected to continue to open alongside skipper Rohit Sharma at the other end. Jaiswal in the last Test match entered the record books by smashing a double century (224) in the first innings. His ability to play quick-fire knocks has helped the Indian team to gain the much-needed momentum.
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Middle-order: Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel
Shubman Gill, who was struggling with the bat for long time, managed to get back his mojo in the last Test match by scoring a ton in the second innings against England in Visakhapatnam. The absence of KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer for the third Test will help Sarfaraz Khan to make his debut in the format.
Sarfaraz Khan, after toiling hard in the domestic cricket circuit, will finally get his reward by representing the national team for first time in the 3rd Test match against England in Rajkot. Moreover, reports suggest that Dhruv Jurel is expected to replace KS Bharat as a wicket-keeper batsman in the playing XI.
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All-Rounders: Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin
Axar Patel and Ravichandran Ashwin are expected to play a key role as frontline spinners in the 3rd Test. Ashwin has been a disappointment in this Test series so far, but he is expected to make a strong comeback in the upcoming game and complete his milestone of taking 500 wickets in Test cricket.
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Bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj
India’s vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah has single handedly won a Test for India in the previous game and also achieved a new feat of reaching number 1 ICC rankings in Test cricket. Mukesh Kumar who was bit expensive in the last game, is expected to make way for Mohammed Siraj while Kuldeep Yadav is expected to play ahead of Washington Sundar.
