Perth, Australia

Team India will be without their star batters, regular captain Rohit Sharma and new number three Shubman Gill, for the Perth Test against Australia starting November 22. While Rohit confirmed his unavailability for the first BGT Test due to personal reasons, Gill will be out with a broken thumb. The visitors, however, have identified their replacements for the series opener, with reports of Harshit Rana making his Test debut at the Optus Stadium also doing rounds.

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India was jolted with a double blow on Sunday (Nov 17), when Rohit and Gill were declared unavailable for selection for the first Test. Though the management will play KL Rahul at the top alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal, sources close to the information informed Times of India (TOI) of Devdutt Padikkal playing at number.

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Padikkal was part of the India-A squad that played two shadow matches against Australia-A, losing both, with reserve players and potential Test hopefuls pressing their cases for Team India's return. Though most players failed to impress the selectors, including India-A captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, Padikkal and Sai Sudharsan were two names tipped to link with the main squad for the five-match Test series.

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Following Gill’s setback (who suffered a thumb injury while fielding during India’s WACA simulation game), the selectors and team management asked Padikkal to stay as cover, with the reports admitting that he might play at the Optus Stadium in Perth.

"He (Padikkal) is likely to bat at the No. 3 spot now," a source close to the information said in a chat with TOI.

Rana set for Test debut

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In Rohit’s absence, ace seamer Jasprit Bumrah will lead India in the first Test in Perth. Considering the conditions on offer, with steep bounce and carry being prime parameters, Harshit Rana, who impressed everyone, including head coach Gautam Gambhir, with his performance in the simulation game, might get his maiden Test cap. 

India’s pace attack for the first game could consist of Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep Singh and Harshit Rana, with one of the three spin-bowling all-rounders (Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin and Washington Sundar) retaining the number seven spot. Though fellow all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy might get a game sometime in this marquee Test series, four-seamers could highlight India’s bowling attack for the opener.

Meanwhile, Rana made headlines with his star performances for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2024, picking 19 wickets and helping his team lift the trophy for the third time. 

(With inputs from agencies)