Prithvi Shaw to make Test debut

RAJKOT: India on Wednesday announced their XI a day before the opening Test against West Indies, a process which the team wishes to follow in the longest format. Young Mumbai batsman and India’s U-19 World Cup winner, Prithvi Shaw will be making his Test debut on Thursday, but Mayank Agarwal, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj and Hanuma Vihari, who made his Test debut in the final Test against England at The Oval, missed out. Shaw will be 18 years and 329 days on Thursday.

Right-arm pacer Thakur was named 12th man in the side which went back to the five-bowler strategy at home. India will field a spin-heavy attack with R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav. Umesh Yadav made a comeback to the XI for the first time since the first Test in England at Edgbaston. He will share the new ball with Mohammed Shami.

Vihari had scored a half-century on debut in the first innings of the final Test, but had to make way perhaps for the fifth bowler. A right-arm off-break bowler, Vihari had also picked 3/37 in the second innings of that Test.

On Tuesday, the three openers in the race — KL Rahul, Agarwal and Shaw — batted in tandem at the nets but the team gave no sign on who would pair up. The selection was clear during the team’s training sessions on Wednesday when Rahul and Shaw were among those to hit the nets first. Squad: Prithvi Shaw, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohd Shami, Umesh Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Shardul Thakur