India have won the toss and have opted to bat
Virat Kohli: We are gonna have a bat first. Looks like a pretty good wicket, good covering of grass on it. The spinners will come into play; an ideal day to bat. We haven’t discussed that to be honest. It’s another Test match for our country, something we are very proud about. We have to play good, hard-fought cricket for the next five days. Rohit Sharma is back home. He’s become a father which is a great thing. KL Rahul replaces him at the top of the order. Vihari comes in at six. Kuldeep Yadav comes in place of Ishant Sharma.
India (Playing XI): Lokesh Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli(c), Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah
Tim Paine: We would have batted first too. There’s a bit of grass coverage, hopefully we bring slips and keeper into play. We need to improve in all areas from Melbourne. We need to focus on doing the basics right. If we stay in the moment and put India under pressure, then we can be in the game. Marnus Labuschagne and Handscomb come back in. The top six – Khawaja will go to the top of the order. Marnus will bat at three, so we’ll have Marsh, Head and Handscomb.
Australia (Playing XI): Marcus Harris, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Travis Head, Tim Paine(w/c), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood
