Following their disappointing loss to Australia in the third Test, India has responded by recalling the experienced pacer Mohammad Shami to their XI for the fourth and final Test of the Border-Gavaskar series in Ahmedabad. Shami was rested for the previous Test at Indore, and fellow quick Mohammed Siraj has to make way for his return to the Indian line-up. KS Bharat is also given the opportunity once again despite poor performance in the series so far. Shami is poised to make an instant impact, as Steve Smith, has chosen to bat first.
Despite India’s 2-1 lead in the series and their retention of the Border-Gavaskar trophy, Rohit Sharma’s team is under pressure to secure their spot in the WTC final.
KS Bharat over Ishan Kishan
KS Bharat has been granted another opportunity over Ishan Kishan by India, as Rohit has endorsed the wicket-keeper in the lead-up to the Test.
“If someone’s making a debut in the series. You’ve got to give him enough room or enough innings for him to set himself up for a big score.”
Rohit said.
“That is something that I spoke to Bharat at the start of the series. Do not worry about what kind of pitches we play on, or what challenges are ahead, you’ll get enough time to prove yourself, because these pitches are not easy.”
“If you’re playing on pitches such as these, you’ve to be ready for guys failing in some innings as well. And you’ve got to back those guys. And that is what we’re doing with KS (Bharat). He has a lot of runs in domestic cricket, has experience, and he’s a good keeper.”
“I spoke to Ishan as well, when he gets a chance, he’ll get a number of games. He won’t be dropped after a couple of Tests. And that’s what we’re doing with Bharat as well.”
Playing XI for Ahmedabad Test ;
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KS Bharat (wk), Ravindra Jadeja. Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Umesh Yadav, Mohammad Shami.
Australia: Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (c), Peter Handscomb, Cameron Green. Alex Carey (wk), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Todd Murphy, Matthew Kuhnemann.
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