- India are playing Australia in the fourth and final Test of the series starting Thursday in Sydney.
- India lead the series 2-1 and if the visitors win the final test, Virat Kohli will become the first captain to lead a Test series victory Down Under.
- Ishant Sharma has been dropped from the 13-man squad announced by the team on the eve of the match.
- R Ashwin is still injured and a final decision on him will be taken before toss.
India's pursuit of history hit a minor glitch with injury concerns ahead of the series decider in Sydney starting Thursday but Virat Kohli's men will still walk in as overwhelming favourites against a faltering Australia in the fourth and final Test.
Leading 2-1 in the four-match series, India remain firm favourites to make it 3-1 at the Sydney Cricket Ground despite the injury-forced omission of premier spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and senior pacer Ishant Sharma, who has not been named in the 13-member list.
Australia have hosted India since 1947-48, and barring three occasions – in 1980-81, 1985-86 and 2003-04 which were drawn – the visitors have lost the Test series on seven occasions -- 1967-68, 1977-78, 1991-92, 1999-2000, 2007-08, 2011-12, 2014-15.
Virat Kohli, thus, is in a unique position as the only Indian captain to go into the final Test on the Australian soil with the cushion of a series lead.
A series win in Australia will certainly put Kohli on a different pedestal even though the quality of home team's batting line-up suffered adversely due to the bans of former skipper Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner.
However Kohli will need to fret over his team combination as the skipper revealed that Ashwin hasn't adequately recovered from his injury despite being named in the preliminary 13-member squad.
With spin considered a traditional factor in any Sydney Test, a decision on R Ashwin’s participation will be made before the toss on Thursday as he is yet to recover from the left abdominal strain that laid ruled him out of the last two Tests.
Ishant Sharma is however ruled out of the match after experiencing discomfort in his left rib cage and the team management didn't want to risk him by playing him in the decider.
While Ashwin had played on in Nottingham and Southampton (despite a groin injury as revealed by the team management only at the Oval), he has already missed two Tests - in Perth and Melbourne - in the ongoing series.
"It's unfortunate that he's had two niggles that are quite similar in the last two away tours. He's very important for sure. In Test cricket, he's a vital part of this team and we wanted him to be 100 percent fit for a longer period to that he can come back to us in the Test format. He is very disappointed that he's not able to recover in time," Kohli told the media early this morning indicating the Ashwin would miss the match.
However, in a strange u-turn, the team added Ashwin’s name in the 13-man squad that is traditionally announced on the eve of the match. A final decision will be taken before toss on Thursday.
Additionally, India have included left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav as cover, in case the skipper decides to go in with two spinners.
Umesh Yadav has been included in place of Ishant, along with Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah.
In Rohit Sharma's absence, out-of-favour opener KL Rahul could be slated for a comeback after missing out in Melbourne, with Hanuma Vihari slotting down to his number six spot.
This is on assumption that regardless of Ashwin's fitness, India will opt to play four bowlers, whether in a two-pacer-two spinners or three-pacers-one-spinner combination.
There is no option of playing an all-rounder as Hardik Pandya continues to be ignored, despite a hectic pre-match workout in the nets with both bat and ball. Kohli has described Vihari as an “exciting” spinner and he will be the second spin option, if India retain their bowling combination from the MCG Test.
Additionally, this 13-man shortlist can also be seen as a ploy to keep Australia guessing, for the hosts made a departure from norm and decided not to name their playing eleven for the first time in this series.
Skipper Tim Paine said that they would wait to announce the team until the toss, taking into consideration if India opt to play two full-time spinners.
While they need at least a draw in Sydney to win the series outright, India will retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy irrespective of the result. Kohli will join Ganguly as the only Indian captain to have achieved this feat in Australia.
Additionally, one more win will take Kohli ahead of Ganguly, who led India to 11 wins in 28 overseas Tests. Kohli has matched that record in 24 away Tests.
For Australia, batsman Peter Handscomb is expected to make a comeback for Mitchell Marsh, who has come under severe criticism after his poor shot selection in Melbourne.
The other toss-up is between opener Aaron Finch and leg-spin all-rounder Marnus Labuschagne. If Finch is left out, Usman Khawaja will open with Marcus Harris, and Labuschagne slotting in the middle-order.
It remains to be seen if this would solve any of Australia's batting problems, with not a single batsman scoring a century so far in this Test series.
India’s 13-Man Squad For Sydney Test
Virat Kohli (capt), Mayank Agarwal, Hanuma Vihari, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, R Ashwin.
Australia’s Test Squad
Tim Paine (capt & wk), Marcus Harris, Aaron Finch, Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne, Peter Handscomb, Peter Siddle.
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