India vs Australia, 1st Test, Adelaide: Shaw picked for pink-ball game, Saha preferred over Pant

KL Rahul has been left out of the final eleven for the first Test against Australia, which begins in Adelaide on Thursday.

Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal are likely to open for India in the pink-ball Test against Australian in the Adelaide Oval on Thursday.

KL Rahul has been left out of the playing eleven as India decided to go ahead with Prithvi Shaw as the opener for the first Test against Australia, which begins in Adelaide on Thursday. With Prithvi coming in, he is set to open the innings with Mayank Agarwal. Earlier in the day, India captain Virat Kohli hinted Rahul could miss out on the first Test. "KL is a quality player, and that's why he has been included in the Test squad. We will have to see what combination suits the balance of the team best," he had said.

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"Everyone is playing well - they are feeling good. We have a lot of quality players. Someone like a Hanuma Vihari has been absolutely solid. He is someone who has grit and character.

"KL was brought into the side, understanding we do have opening options. When Rohit comes back into the team, we will have another opener who is established and is going to start. So, where and how KL fits, is a conversation we have to monitor closely. We have to bring our best squad in Australia and go for the best-suited combination," Kohli added.

Veteran Wriddhiman Saha has also been selected over Rishabh Pant, who scored a hundred in the practice game.

SQUAD Virat Kohli (c), Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah. Subs: Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj, Ravindra Jadeja