India received a major setback after young opener Prithvi Shaw was ruled out of remainder of the Test series against Australia.
Shaw was certain to start the Border Gavaskar Trophy but injured his ankle during the warm-up match before the Test series. Shaw was expected to regain his fitness ahead of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne with former Australia captain Ricky Ponting saying Shaw looked at ease while batting in the outfield during the ongoing Perth Test.
However, the Indian management has decided to send Shaw back home and asked for batsman Mayank Agarwal as a replacement.
Also, all-rounder Hardik Pandya will join the team for the third Test in Melbourne. Pandya, who has just recovered from a serious back injury, proved is match fitness by playing in the Ranji Trophy match for his state team Baroda against Mumbai. Pandya picked up seven wickets in the match and scored a fifty.
However, it remains to be seen if the Indian management will take a chance with players who are not 100 per cent fit for a Test.
Despite Shaw’s injury, current openers Murali Vijay and KL Rahul will feel the pressure as one of them is almost certain to lose his spot after continued failures at the top of the order.
