India hint at big selection call for first Test in Australia

The Indian camp has hinted at a significant selection decision ahead of the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which starts this Friday in Perth.

Speaking to the press on Wednesday, bowling coach Morne Morkel singled out uncapped all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy as a potential inclusion.

“He is one of the young guys that we’ve mentioned, he’s got that sort of batting, all-round ability,” he said.

“He’ll be a guy that can sort of hold that one end up first.

“He hits the bat a little bit harder than you think — so on these sort of conditions where there might be a little bit of seam movement upfront, especially the first couple of days…

“He’ll be a very accurate wicket-to-wicket style of bowler. It’s a lovely opportunity for him to hold that all-rounder spot.”

If Reddy does get the nod, someone will have to make way.

The talk among the Indian cricket press is that veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin will play, which suggests Ravindra Jadeja could be left out.

While it is not surprising that India would select only one front-line spinner for a Test in Western Australia, Jadeja’s omission would leave a wealth of experience on the sidelines.

With the visitors already missing Rohit Sharma for the start of the series, stand-in skipper Jasprit Bumrah is expected to lean heavily on the team’s most experienced players for support.

The money is coming for Australia to win the opening Test, with online bookmakers bringing them in from $1.44 to as short as $1.37 in the last few days.

India, meanwhile, have drifted from $3.60 out to $3.70 with Bet365.

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