After a demoralising series loss at home against New Zealand for the first time in 12 years, India will aim to shake things up in Test cricket when they travel to Australia for the much-anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
For the first time in history, the BGT is set to a five-match series with the inaugural Test being held at the WACA ground in Perth.
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Rohit Sharma and Co. are aiming to do the unthinkable - winning three Test series in a row. Only two teams, West Indies and South Africa have achieved this feat in the past. India won their first-ever series down under in 2018/19 before repeating the feat in their tour of 2020/21.
On the other hand, Australia will aim to reclaim lost glory and win back the Border Gavaskar Trophy, which has remained with India since their 2014/15 Australia tour.
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India's likely playing XI in IND vs AUS 1st Test in Perth
Indian captain Rohit Sharma will be a notable absentee in the first test match of the series in Perth. Sharma is unlikely to travel to Australia before November 22 due to the birth of his boy with partner Ritika Sajdeh.
On Saturday, news emerged that Shubman Gill injured his finger while taking a catch in a practice game which virtually ruled him out of action from the first game.
MORE: India's intra-squad practice match: Updates from Perth
In the absence of Gill and Sharma, India are likely to hand a debut to Devdutt Padikkal at Number 3 as the other India A players including Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sai Sudharsan have been asked to return back home.
Padikkal's form in the practice matches has reportedly made him the front-runner to take up the role of an opener alongside Jaiswal.
Kohli is expected to stick to his number 4 position while Dhruv Jurel's fine form in the practice matches could see him back in the Test side.
Earlier reports stated that Washington Sundar could play as the lone spinner at Perth. However, the latest Indian Express report suggest that the spinner is likely to be R Ashwin alongwith pace all-rounder Nitish Reddy over Sarfaraz Khan.
MORE: Will Mohammed Shami be able to join India Test team in Australia?
India's likely playing XI: KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Reddy, R Ashwin, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah (C) Mohammed Siraj.
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