Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh has shared his pick for Indian XI for the upcoming first Test against West Indies which begins on July 12, 2023, at Windsor Park, Roseau, Dominica.
The Indian team would like to come up with a good show after a month’s break and get the better of the hosts in the first match to get off to a flying start in their Caribbean tour, in which, apart from playing the red-ball matches, both teams will also clash in three ODIs and five T20I matches.
Ahead of the start of the series opener, former India spinner Harbhajan Singh predicted the Indian playing XI and shared some surprise picks.
He picked Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill as openers and named Yashasvi Jaiswal to make his India Test debut and bat at no.3. He then continued with Virat Kohli at no.4 and Ajinkya Rahane at no.5.
“According to me, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill should open, and Yashasvi Jaiswal should play at No. 3. A lot of people were saying that Yashasvi should be made to open and Shubman should be played down the order—I don’t think so because Shubman has made it his place.
He (Gill) has got that position based on his performance. So his position should not be touched. I will play Yashasvi at No. 3. I hope he makes his debut and scores a lot of runs. He is a very good player. After that, Virat Kohli will play at No. 4 and Ajinkya Rahane will play at No. 5,” Harbhajan Singh said in a video on his YouTube channel.
WI v IND 2023: COC Predicted Team India Playing XI for the first Test in Dominica
He then picked KS Bharat as the wicketkeeper of the team in place of Ishan Kishan and slotted him at no.7 below Ravindra Jadeja who bats at no.6, followed by R Ashwin at no.8. As for the fast bowlers, Harbhajan went for Mohammed Siraj and Jaydev Unadkat and to partner them, he picked Mukesh Kumar over Navdeep Saini or Shardul Thakur.
"Ravindra Jadeja at No. 6, R Ashwin or KS Bharat at No. 7. If Ashwin bats at No. 7, then KS Bharat bats at No. 8. Then I will see Mohammed Siraj at No. 9. Along with him, I will see Jaydev Unadkat because he has been performing in domestic cricket for a long time and he hasn’t had many opportunities.
So I hope he gets an opportunity to play there and he shows what he can do. So I will keep Unadkat on the team, and at No. 11, I will keep Mukesh Kumar. He has also performed extremely well in the Ranji Trophy, due to which he has got a chance to show his prowess in the Indian team," he added.
Harbhajan Singh's India XI for 1st Test against West Indies:
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Srikar Bharat, Mohammed Siraj, Jaydev Unadkat, Mukesh Kumar.
