India announced their playing XI for the iconic Boxing Day Test starting on Wednesday, December 26 a day prior to the much-anticipated occasion, giving a sighter of how confident and determined they are to clinch a victory and go 2-1 up in the four-match Test series.
While the visitors have got rid of their two struggling openers - KL Rahul and Murali Vijay - in favour of a makeshift arrangement with Mayank Agarwal and Hanuma Vihari, Rohit Sharma has made a return to the side after being ruled out from the second Test in Perth with a back injury.
On the other hand, left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja is fit and has replaced premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who continues to recover from the abdominal strain that he sustained after the Adelaide Test.
With pace trio of Mohammad Shami, Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah sharing the massive responsibility in the fast bowling department.
Meanwhile, Ashwin's injury has paved the way for an opportunity to Ravindra Jadeja who has finally got a chance in the series and has only featured at the Oval in this long run of Test matches overseas.
Although there was an air of uncertainty over his inclusion coming into the game, the BCCI clarified it by declaring that Jadeja is 100% fit.
This is where former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar has given his vote of confidence to Jadeja backing him to come out triumph despite being faced with the much sterner overseas challenge.
Manjrekar believes that not only is Jadeja a far better bowler than the last time he played abroad, but he also hasn't done much wrong to not be considered as a first-choice bowler when there is place for only one.
The 53-year-old cited statistics to suggest that while he has played less in the SENA countries - South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia - than Ashwin, Jadeja isn't far behind with his record when compared to the more fancied and acknowledged teammate.
While Ashwin has taken 48 wickets in 27 innings in those countries at an average of 43.37 and strike rate of 90, Jadeja has picked up 25 wickets in 14 innings at an average of 43.56 and strike rate of 92.2.
India lost the Perth Test by a margin of 146 runs and would be hoping for the likes of Jadeja to stand up and ensure a 2-1 lead in the series for them.
