India VS Australia First Test Match: Live score And Prediction

India VS Australia First Test Match 

The first Test of the four-match series between India and Australia starts in Pune from February 23. It will be played out at the Maharashtra Cricket Association ground in the city.

 

India, the number one Test team in the world, have been unbeaten in 19 successive Test and last lost in August 2015 against Sri Lanka in Galle. Since then, they have won series against New Zealand, England and Bangladesh at home and beaten West Indies in the Caribbean. At home, India last lost against England in 2012.

Toss Prediction: India Win The Toss And Choose To Bat First.

Match Prediction: India Win The First Test Match.

Match Info

Series:                          Australia Tour Of India, 2017

Match:                         Ind vs Aus, 1st Test, Australia tour of India, 2017

Date:                            Thursday, February 23, 2017 - Monday, February 27, 2017

Time:                            04:00 AM GMT

Venue:                          Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune

Umpires:                      Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong

Third Umpire:             Richard Illingworth

Match Referee:            Chris Broad

Team Squad:

Team India Squad:

Virat Kohli (c), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Kuldeep Yadav, Abhinav Mukund, Karun Nair, Jayant Yadav, Hardik Pandya

 

Team Australia Squad:

Steven Smith (c), Matthew Wade (wk), David Warner, Matt Renshaw, Usman Khawaja, Glenn Maxwell, Peter Handscomb, Mitchell Starc, Steve O'Keefe, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Swepson, Ashton Agar, Jackson Bird

India: Kohli said during the pre-match conference that they expect the pitch to be slow and low and that could mean India revisiting their two-spinner strategy that was used against Bangladesh and employ an additional slow bowler to assist Ashwin and Jadeja. With a number of left-handers in the Australian line-up, Jayant Yadav should get the chance to add to the impressive start to his Test career, in place of a pacer. The rest of the line-up looks settled and should see no further change.

Australia: Australia's assessment of the pitch - 'very dry'- indicates that they too could go in with three spinners. Nathan Lyon and Steve O'Keefe look likely to spearhead the spin attack, with one of Ashton Agar or Mitchell Swepson as the third spinner. In the batting department, Matt Renshaw should get the nod ahead of Usman Khawaja, while Glenn Maxwell, too, is likely to start the tour on the bench, with Shaun Marsh taking the middle-order spot. The other Marsh is expected to take the all-rounder's spot and share the new ball with Mitchell Starc.