IND vs WI: After losing to Australia in the World Test Championship final, India is heading to the Caribbean islands for two Tests, three One-Day Internationals (ODIs), and T20 Internationals. With no Pujara, Rishabh Pant, Shami, or Jasprit Bumrah in the declared test squad for West Indies, let’s predict India’s Strongest Playing 11 for Test Series Against West Indies.
The series kicks off with a test match between India and the hosts at Windsor Park in Dominica. The BCCI announced the official test squad for Team India’s forthcoming West Indies tour on Friday, June 23. A couple of fresh faces are introduced and experienced ones are handed some rest.
India’s World Test Championship 2023–25 campaign will start on July 12 with a two-match Test series against the West Indies. This series will be important for Rohit Sharma and his team since it can allow them to open their account on the World Test Championship (WTC) table for the years 2023–2025 if they win.
IND vs WI Indian Squad
Rohit Sharma (C), Ajinkya Rahane(VC), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan, KS Bharat, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar & Navdeep Saini
So, with a total of 16 members being selected for the Test series, Let’s take a look at the strongest predicted playing 11 that Team India will put forward for the 2023 Test series vs West Indies.
IND vs WI: India’s Strongest Playing 11 for Test
We broke the team into 3 segments: Top order, Middle order, and Bowlers.
TOP Order: The Skipper of India Rohit Sharma is always there at the top with Shubman Gill and they are good in their zone. They try to put forward some intent and both do possess that hunk class to dominate the bowling unit and solid defenses as well. Interestingly, Cheteshwar Pujara has been dropped and two new faces- Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Jaiswal are added to the squad.
With that, between Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad, left-hander Yashasvi Jaiswal looks all set to mark his debut as an opener.
MIDDLE ORDER: Though Virat Kohli is passing through a rough phase of his test career, he is the one whom you wouldn’t think to miss on any India Test Match. Come Back of Ajinkya Rahane is also quite fascinating. He came out as India’s best batsman in WTC Final in The Ovals against Australia also some still claim that if Cummins’ front foot had landed an inch behind, Rahane was also on the radar to be dropped. Ravindra Jadeja is the next name in the line-up followed by KS Bharat. No spot for Ishan Kishan!
Bowlers: India may continue to play with Shardul Thakur as the pacer, they shall also select Ravichandran Ashwin as the primary spinner in the squad. Mohammad Siraj to lead the inexperience bowling unit. Now, it is a tough fight between Mukesh Kumar and Jaydev Unadkat. Mukesh is a new bowler whereas Unadkat brings some experience to the table. Tough call but skillwise, Mukesh Kumar should be preferred.
IND vs WI India’s Strongest Playing 11 for Test
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, KS Bharat, Ravi Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Md Siraj and Mukesh Kumar.
READ: BCCI Open Up On Sarfaraz Khan’s Exclusion from IND vs WI Test Squad | India Tour Of West Indies 2023
For more details head to BCCI’s official website.