Hogg makes final changes before Test with Bangladesh

Brad Hogg has made a bold selection call by placing Ravindra Jadeja at No.5 and leaving out KL Rahul from his ideal India playing XI for the first Test against Bangladesh in Chennai. Both Jadeja and Rahul have been named in India’s squad for the match, but Hogg has chosen to omit the latter.

Jadeja, who has been on a break since the T20 World Cup and missed the Duleep Trophy 2024 opener, finds a spot in Hogg's lineup due to his ability to maintain a left-right batting combination. Rahul, on the other hand, played for India A in the Duleep Trophy, scoring 37 and 57.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, the former spinner revealed his preferred XI, with Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli as his top four batters. Hogg's choice to slot Jadeja at No.5 aims to maintain a left-right balance. He also included Sarfaraz Khan and the returning Rishabh Pant before naming his bowling attack.

For the bowling unit, Hogg selected R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah, opting to leave out Axar Patel.

"The XI I’m picking for India’s first Test against Bangladesh is Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma opening, Gill at three, Kohli at four, and Jadeja at five to keep that left-right combination. Sarfaraz Khan, Pant, and then Ashwin, Kuldeep, Siraj, and Bumrah in the bowling lineup," said Hogg.

He also noted that this combination would perform well in Australia and would serve as a good preparation for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

"This team will do well in Australia as well. It’s a good start to warming up for the Australian summer. No KL Rahul or Axar Patel in my XI," Hogg added.

Reports suggest, however, that KL Rahul is likely to be part of India's actual lineup for the first Test, potentially ahead of Sarfaraz Khan.

India squad for Bangladesh 1st Test

Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Yash Dayal.