MELBOURNE, Dec 25, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – India dumped openers Murali Vijay and
KL Rahul after a lean run of form and will be without injured spinner
Ravichandran Ashwin for the third Test against Australia in Melbourne from
Wednesday.
Vijay and Rahul have scored just 95 runs between them in eight innings,
with debutant Mayank Agarwal to open the batting alongside Hanuma Vihari, who
has been elevated up the order.
Experienced middle-order batsman Rohit Sharma was declared fit and resumes
his place in the side after missing the second Test in Perth.
But Ashwin, who also missed that game, has failed to recover from an
abdominal strain, with left-arm finger-spinner Ravindra Jadeja brought in as
part of a four-man attack.
The four-Test series is tied 1-1.
India – Mayank Agarwal, Hanuma Vihari, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli
(capt), Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed
Shami, Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah.