India's strongest playing 11 for 1st Test against Bangladesh

India are set to play a 2-match Test series against Bangladesh starting on September 19. The Test series will be followed by a 3-match T20I series. The Men in Blue will host the tour and the first Test will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. BCCI have also announced a 16-member squad for the first Test.

Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant are set to make their comeback in the longer format. Interestingly, Pant will make his Test appearance after a gap of 634 days. He missed a lot of Cricket after a horrific road accident that happened in December 2022. However, as Pant is fully fit now, fans are desperately waiting to see him scoring runs in the whites again. 

Let’s take a look at India’s strongest playing 11 for the 1st Test against Bangladesh:

1. Top Order

Left-handed batter Yashasvi Jaiswal is likely to be the opening partner of skipper Rohit Sharma. Jaiswal is in red-hot form in the Test format and would like to carry his form in the upcoming Bangladesh series. Rohit was also in good touch in his last Test appearance. Shubman Gill is most probably the no. 3 batter for the Indian team as he revealed that it is his desired batting position.

2. Middle Order

Virat Kohli will bat at his regular batting position which is no. 4. The former Indian captain has great records batting at that position. Kl Rahul is likely to bat at the no. 5 position followed by wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant. However, there are chances for the management staff to go with Sarfaraz Khan as well. Pant will be the first choice for the wicketkeeping position because of his past records.

Also Read: Rishabh Pant to make comeback in Test cricket after 634 days

3. All-rounders

India will have a wide variety of all-rounders in the upcoming Test series. The spin trio of Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Ravichandran Ashwin is going to be a key factor in the Indian team. Jadeja will bat at no. 7 position followed by Axar and Ashwin. The reason behind keeping three spinners in the team would be the spin-friendly conditions of Chepauk.

4. Bowlers

Although the pitch would be spin-friendly, the pacers can also contribute a lot in the match as they are most likely to bowl in the initial stage of the match and getting early breakthroughs for the team will be very beneficial. India’s star bowler Jasprit Bumrah is back in the Test squad and is most likely to be in the playing 11 as well. His bowling partner would be Mohammed Siraj who has delivered consistent performances in the longer format.

Also Read: Why did BCCI drop Jasprit Bumrah as Vice-captain ahead of Test series against Bangladesh?

India’s strongest playing 11 for the 1st Test against Bangladesh:

Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Jasprti Bumraj, Mohammed Siraj

India’s 16-member squad for the 1st Test against Bangladesh:

Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Yash Dayal.