It has now almost been confirmed that the pitch for the 1st Test match between India and Australia starting on 9 February in Nagpur will be a ‘Rank Turner’. Hence, spinners are expected to play a dominant role in the match.
Team India has 4 quality spinners – Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav.
Earlier many reports claimed that Team India will be including 3 spinners in their playing 11 for the 1st Test which will not include the leg-spinner. However, now its likely that Team India will make 4 spinners play in the 1st Test as the pitch is likely to be a rank turner.
“We want to maximise our advantage and prepare turners. Spinners are our biggest strength and we should give them the best conditions to bowl and get wickets,” a source in the team told IndianExpress.
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“Of course, the team will make the final call on the eleven on the eve of the match, or in the morning after having final look at the wicket, but four spinners are certainly in our plans, as we have four quality spinners in the team,” the source added.
The aim for India is very simple. India wants to dominate the mighty Australians and win the series at all costs. This not only will help India inch closer to the ICC No. 1 rankings but will also help Rohit Sharma and Co qualify as the second team in the WTC finals.