Ind vs Aus, 4th Test: Hosts win toss, elect to bat; Washington and Natarajan debut
Jan 15, 2021
Brisbane [Australia], January 15 : Australia won the toss and elected to bat first against India in the fourth Test here at the Gabba on Friday.
The visitors have made four changes to their playing XI. Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Hanuma Vihari and Jasprit Bumrah are out. Shardul Thakur, T Natarajan, Mayank Agarwal and Washinton Sundar are in for the side. Tamil Nadu duo of spinner Sundar and pacer Natarajan are making their Test debuts while Australia spinner Nathan Lyon is playing his landmark 100th Test.
For the home side, Marcus Harris replaces injured Will Pucovski.
"We had to make changes, but it's an opportunity for others. Looking forward to start well. Both the debutants play the shorter formats, just want them to enjoy the game. Ashwin, Bumrah, Jadeja, Vihari are out. Thakur, Mayank, Natarajan and Sundar are playing. This is a big rivalry for us. We don't want to think too far ahead, just want to start well," India's stand-in skipper said at the toss.
The four-match series is currently levelled at 1-1 after the famous draw at Sydney Cricket Ground.
Australia (Playing XI): David Warner, Marcus Harris, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Matthew Wade, Cameron Green, Tim Paine(w/c), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Mayank Agarwal, Rishabh Pant(w), Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj, T Natarajan.