India is currently playing without some of its first-choice players, but are still producing positive results.
Team India is always known for its star-studded players. Be it batting or bowling, the team has abundance of talent. To make a place in India’s playing XI is not an easy task. There have been many instances previously where good players have failed to make it to the XI due to high competition with a number of players staking their claim on a particular position.
The Test lineup of India is something that budding cricketers dream to be a part of. Recently, we saw players like Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, and Jasprit Bumrah missing some Tests due to various reasons. Although this was a setback for India as it made their team inexperienced and weak. But it also provided opportunities for the youngsters to make their presence felt. Today, we will look how India’s full-strength XI could look like in Test cricket in the near future.
The young 22-year-old has been brilliant so far in his short international career. His numbers in Test cricket are outstanding. He already has two double-centuries in just 8 Tests. He also scored a century on his Test debut at Dominica against West Indies. All of his three centuries have been 150-plus scores, which shows his ability to play big innings.
Although he is yet to prove himself in testing overseas conditions, Jaiswal looks like a perfect foil for India at the top order. He is a left-hander, has good technique, and has the ability to score big. His hunger to pile on the runs consistently makes him a permanent fixture in India’s Test team.
Tests: 8, Runs: 971, Avg: 69.35
Rohit Sharma will have a big role to play in the transition period. He needs to ensure that this period goes smoothly without costing India lot of matches. The 36-year-old is likely to continue as India’s captain for the upcoming years. As an opener, Rohit will be expected to give India solid starts. His form has been up and down in Tests recently, but his experience will come handy in different conditions.
Rohit Sharma has always been a good captain regardless of his batting form. He backs his players and gets the best out of them. Adding to this, Rohit is also an excellent player of spin bowling, which will help India on rank turners. Recently, he also completed 4000 runs in Test cricket.
Tests: 58, Runs: 4034, Avg: 44.82
After starting his Test career as an opener, Shubman Gill was given the crucial spot at No. 3 in India’s Test batting lineup. With both Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane out of the team due to poor form, Gill had the chance to own the spot. But he started badly on the tours of West Indies and South Africa.
In the first Test of the ongoing home series against England, Gill failed to get a big score which further questioned his place. But the 24-year-old responded well at Vizag to score a second innings century. Despite struggling at times with his defence, Gill has found a way to score runs.
Tests: 24, Runs: 1382, Avg: 33.70
If Virat Kohli is fit, there is no doubt about his place in the side. The veteran made himself unavailable for the England series but is set to resume his Test career from India’s next Test series. Kohli has hardly missed any Test match throughout his career. He is a legend in this format and is always vocal about his love for Test cricket.
Although he is 35, but Kohli’s top-notch fitness could beat any youngster in the team. At No. 4, he has a crucial role to play in India’s batting order. He has 29 hundreds and 30 fifties to his name in this format, which shows his excellent conversion rate. At this stage of his career, his experience and aggression will be helpful for India in crunch games. He looks set to play for many more years to come.
Tests: 113, Runs: 8848, Avg: 49.15
After spending much of his time in Test cricket as an opener, KL Rahul was given a spot in the middle order from India’s tour of South Africa in 2023. Rahul took the opportunity with both hands and smashed an eye-catching century against a world-class bowling attack. In the first Test of the ongoing series against England, Rahul top-scored for India in the first innings with a classy 86 before being ruled out of the series due to injury.
Rahul’s ability to play spin and fast bowling equally well makes him a perfect fit for the spot. The 31-year-old is also a decent wicketkeeper, which can be helpful for the team, in case there is a need. Sarfaraz Khan could be a substitute for KL Rahul as the youngster had a superb outing in his debut Test.
Tests: 50, Runs 2863, Avg: 34.08
The No. 6 spot becomes crucial in a Test team as it is the spot of an allrounder. Ravindra Jadeja is currently the No. 1 allrounder in ICC Test Rankings. His performance in the last few years has significantly improved, both with bat and ball. His improved performance with the bat makes him such an important member of India’s Test side.
Jadeja not only scores in India, but he has played some important knocks outside India as well. Adding his excellent fielding skills to this, he provides India a complete package which very few teams in the world have. Axar Patel could be Jadeja’s like-for-like substitute as well.
Tests: 71, Runs: 3021, Bat Avg: 36.39, Wkts.: 292, Bowl Avg: 24.15
Although it is too early to say, but Dhruv Jurel has shown that he has the potential to play Test cricket for a long time. The wicketkeeper was adjudged the Player of the Match in just his second Test match at Ranchi. Both his knocks at Ranchi came under immense pressure when India were losing wickets in clusters.
But Jurel’s calm and composed knocks of 90 and 39* helped cross the line. He has a bright future ahead of him with his skillset. Rishabh Pant is another option that India have once he is fit. Even if Pant plays as a wicketkeeper, Jurel can play as a specialist batter.because of his good temperament.
Tests: 2, Runs: 175, Avg: 87.50, Catches: 4, Stumping: 1
The legendary offspinner just completed 500 wickets in his Test career. He has been around for more than a decade and has established himself as one of the best in the business. Ashwin’s wide skillset makes him a difficult bowler to play. In Indian conditions, he is the captain’s main weapon with the ball. Ashwin is ranked second in the ICC Test Rankings for bowlers and allrounders as well.
The 37-year old is also a decent batter down the order and has five Test centuries to his name. If India opts for four quicks in overseas conditions, Akash Deep could replace him. Akash recently had a dream debut when he troubled England with three wickets with the new ball.
Tests: 99. Wkts: 507, Bowl Avg: 24. Runs: 3309, Bat Avg: 26.47
The art of Mohammed Shami’s seam bowling is well known in the cricketing world. His seam presentation is probably the best in the world that makes him so lethal. Shami has played a big part in India’s overseas success in the last few years. Recently, he was the highest wicket-taker in the ODI World Cup 2023. With the red ball, he has been a regular in India’s lineup.
Very few bowlers are as good as Mohammed Shami with the reverse-swing in the current generation of fast bowling. This makes him an equally good prospect in Indian conditions as well.
Tests: 64, Wkts: 229, Bowl Avg: 27.71
A bowler who got into prominence with T20 cricket, Jasprit Bumrah, soon established himself as India’s premier Test bowler. He played crucial roles in India’s success in England, Australia, and South Africa. Jasprit Bumrah has played fair amount of first-class cricket which made his transition to the longest format a smoother one.
Currently, Bumrah is India’s go-to bowler in all formats. His ability to reverse-swing and bowl lethal yorkers with an awkward action makes him a nightmare for the opposition batters. Bumrah, along with Shami, make a formidable pair for India in Tests.
Tests: 35, Wkts: 157, Bowl Avg: 20.39
Siraj has often been in the shadow of Bumrah and Shami. He is the least experienced among all the quicks but is an equally effective bowler. Siraj made his debut during India’s tour of Australia 2020-21 and led the bowling attack in his first series. He came out on top and helped India stage a memorable upset on Australian soil.
On his day, Siraj has the ability to run through the opposition. He is lethal with the new ball and can reverse the old ball as well. We can see him play a big role in India’s upcoming overseas tours.
Tests: 26, Wkts: 74, Bowl Avg: 29.25
Alongside all these players, India seem to have an excellent bench strength as well. Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar, and Sarfaraz Khan all are capable of producing match-winning performances whenever their chances come.
Looking at the India’s probable XI and their bench strength, this team could pose formidable challenge to any oppostion team in any conditions.
