Ranking 3 combinations India can try to replace Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane
India will have a new-look middle order in their Test team for the first time in a while, with Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane dropped for the two-match series against Sri Lanka.
The bilateral series will begin on March 4.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday named a 18-member squad for the two Tests against Sri Lanka. They also announced that Rohit Sharma will be the new captain in the longest format, making him their skipper across all formats.
Test squad - Rohit Sharma (C), Priyank Panchal, Mayank Agarwal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Shubhman Gill, Rishabh Pant (wk), KS Bharath, R Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Sourabh Kumar, Mohd. Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Mohd. Shami, Jasprit Bumrah (VC).
Pujara and Rahane were under the scanner after poor runs of form, and them not contributing more in the series defeat in South Africa had raised questions.
They have now been told to return to the Ranji Trophy to try and rack up some runs while younger players are given a shot in the team.
Chetan Sharma opens up on the decision of dropping Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane from India's Test squad.
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Shubman Gill, Hanuma Vihari and Shreyas Iyer will vie for the two slots vacated by Pujara and Rahane in the two-match series.
Gill broke into the Test team as an opener. However, the emergence of KL Rahul as an open has moved Gill down the order. The team management has reportedly decided to try him out in the middle order now.
Vihari made his debut in England in 2018, and has mostly been used as an extra batter in overseas Tests.
Iyer, meanwhile, made his Test debut in the home series against New Zealand last year, scoring a century in his first match.
All three can make a strong case to get into the team.
Here we rank the middle-order combinations India can try in the Test series vs Sri Lanka:
#3 Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer
If India opt to get Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer in place of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, then the former will most likely play at No.3, while Iyer would play at No.5, where he has played his only two Tests.
Gill would come in at one-down mainly due to his experience at the top of the order.
Gill can take on pace and is proficient against spin, while Iyer has shown his mastery against spin in his only Test series so far.
However, Iyer has been troubled by raw pace and especially short deliveries in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and for India in limited overs formats. It may pose an issue, especially in overseas matches, in the long run.
This combination would also see Hanuma Vihari, who has done nothing wrong to be kept out of the team since his heroics at the Sydney Cricket Ground, to sit out.
However, both Gill and Iyer are very talented batters and on their day, can be match-winners, and it would be worth trying them in the middle order.
#2 Hanuma Vihari and Shreyas Iyer
In their search for a new No.3, India could look to Hanuma Vihari, who has shown good technique and temperament in difficult conditions.
Vihari has long been looking for a chance and has been shuttled in and out of the team depending on whether they need an extra batter or if one of their mainstays becomes unavailable.
While he has mostly batted at No.6 for India, he also opened the innings in Australia in 2018-19. Although he didn't score a lot of runs, he did a good job of bunting the new ball.
Iyer has shown that he can play long knocks at No.5 and his record at the Ranji Trophy shows that he can also counter-attack when needed.
#1 Hanuma Vihari and Shubman Gill
Hanuma Vihari and Shubman Gill are the most likely replacements for Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane.
Both can play at No.3 and No.5, so it will be interesting to see what lineup India will go with in the series if they do pick Gill and Vihari.
Both of them also have more Test experience than Shreyas Iyer, and are the likely candidates to be first replacements for the two veterans.
While Gill can play at one down, he can also come in after Virat Kohli at No.5, and rack up runs with the older ball.
Gill has a great Ranji Trophy record as well and can do very well against spin.