Virat Kohli and Anil Kumble decided to go with the extra pace bowler for the one-off Test against Bangladesh, but they are likely to go back to the third spinner for the first Test match against Australia, which starts on Thursday in Pune.
India vs Australia Test series schedule
While India ended up beating Bangladesh on a flat-as-a-pancake wicket in Hyderabad, there was a cause for concern every now and then over Kohli's decision to go with the extra pacer instead of Jayant Yadav.
As long as India keep winning, any team selection that the captain makes is justified, but looking at Australia's vulnerabilities against spin, Jayant is expected to come in the place of the extra pace bowler – Bhuvneshwar Kumar is the man most likely to make way.
The only way Kohli will go with three fast bowlers is if the wicket in Pune is one that is likely to aid the quicks more. The curator at the MCA Stadium said the wicket will have plenty of bounce and carry, but that can be a good thing for the spinners as well.
Apart from that one change, India are likely to stick to the same team that beat Bangladesh in Hyderabad.
That means the players set to sit out again are Abhinav Mukund, the backup opener, Karun Nair, the extra middle-order batsman, Kuldeep Yadav, the extra spinner, Hardik Pandya, the fast bowling all-rounder, and Bhuvneshwar.
Australia also look to have settled on most of their playing XI, with the one late decision that they are set to make being who will open the innings with David Warner.
Matt Renshaw and Usman Khawaja are the candidates.
Renshaw got the nod to play in the warm-up match against India A, but could not make an impression, only managing scores of 11 and 10 in the two innings.
Khawaja, though, does not have too many runs to back his claim in these conditions, with the left-hander being dropped during the Sri Lanka series in 2016 owing to his own struggles.
The feeling is Renshaw will get the nod, with the left-hander probably deserving it a little more, considering he scored a brilliant 184 in his last Test match innings, against Pakistan in Sydney.
Mitchell Marsh is set to play the first Test, with the fast bowling all-rounder expected to be picked ahead of Glenn Maxwell. The two spinners in the team should be Nathan Lyon and Steve O'Keefe, with Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc looking to do the damage with the new ball, and also the old, if they get some reverse-swing.
Toss and team news:
Australia won the toss and will bat first.
Confirmed playing XI:
India: KL Rahul, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (C), Ajinkya Rahane, R Ashwin, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravindra Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma.
Australia: David Warner, Matt Renshaw, Steve Smith, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Mitchell Marsh, Matthew Wade, Steve O'Keefe, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
