Prithvi Shaw will be making his Test debut when India take on Windies in the first of the two Tests starting on October 4, 2018. The venue for the series opener is set to be the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot. The day one is scheduled to start at 9:30 AM IST, 4:00 AM GMT.
Windies is coming into this series after defeating Bangladesh 2-0 at home, while India had recently lost their away series against England 4-1. India is still ranked no. 1 in the Test format, but Windies find themselves at the 8th position on the Test rankings.
Vihari, Siraj, and Agarwal left out
India announced a 12-member shortlisted side on the eve of the first Test. Mayank Agarwal, Hanuma Vihari and Mohammad Siraj were left out, hence Prithvi Shaw is set to make his Test debut opening the innings with KL Rahul. India is yet to decide whether they will be playing three seamers or three spinners. As reported by Cricbuzz, either Kuldeep Yadav or Shardul Thakur will be making the playing XI depending on the surface in Rajkot.
🙂 The shining new red cherry
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) September 29, 2018
☺ Batsmen leaning into the drives
😅 5 days of gruelling action
Witness cricket at its best as India take on West Indies, 4th October onwards, LIVE on Star Sports! #INDvWI #TestAsliFansKa pic.twitter.com/5n7qBt87U6
Roach's absence puts pressure on the visitors
Kemar Roach will be unavailable for the first Test hence Windies might have to find a suitable replacement for the experienced pacer.
According to Cricbuzz, coach Stuart Law has shown immense faith in the two young pacers: Keemo Paul and Sherman Lewis. Paul will likely to make the XI while Lewis might have to sit out if the think tank opts for playing an extra spinner in Jomel Warrican.
All set! #TeamIndia gear up for their practice session on the eve of the 1st Test against West Indies #INDvWI pic.twitter.com/penzpeSDHd
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 3, 2018
The pitch at Rajkot has been good for batting in the past.
In fact, during the only Test which was played at this ground, a lot of runs were scored by both England and India. Hence, the pitch is not going trouble the players as much as the weather will. The temperatures are likely to be around 40 degrees, with the humidity being a touch more than 30 percent.
The live coverage of the Test series will be available on the Star Sports channels in India. In the United States, Willow TV will be televising the matches live. The online streaming will be available on the app and website of Hotstar.