India are set to lock horns with England for a five-match Test series, with the series opener slated to start on Friday, June 20, at the Headingley Cricket Stadium in Leeds.
This will be Team India's first big assignment in the new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, as Shubman Gill and co. look to win a Test series on English soil after 18 years.
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With a good mix of young and experienced players, it will be interesting to see who gets the nod to the final playing XI of the first Test.
Meanwhile, Harbhajan Singh has named his playing XI ahead of the all-important clash on Friday.
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Harbhajan Singh picks his India XI for 1st Test vs England
The former Indian trickster took to his official YouTube channel, where he mentioned that although the team looks young and vastly inexperienced on paper, India will put up a proper fight against the Three Lions.
"Team India, although they may seem young and inexperienced on paper, I think they will show their ability and potential on the field, and put up a fight against England."
He also mentioned that India need to figure out whether to go with a batter who can bowl or a bowler who can bat, depending upon the conditions.
Check: Where to watch England vs. India 1st Test free live stream, TV channel and start time
"You need to figure out what you need, a batter who can bowl, or a bowler who can bat a bit. If you need a batter, then go with Reddy, and get him to bowl 10-15 overs a day. If Shardul is in, I think the batting looks a bit thin, although he just scored a ton in the warm-up game."
Harbhajan went on to pick Kuldeep Yadav as an extra spinner besides Ravindra Jadeja, while picking Sai Sudharsan over the experienced Karun Nair to fill in the middle order. He also predicted Arshdeep Singh to make his debut for India in the first Test, over Prasidh Krishn.
Here's Harbhajan Singh's playing XI for the 1st Test vs. England:
- KL Rahul
- Yashasvi Jaiswal
- Sai Sudharsan
- Shubman Gill (c)
- Rishabh Pant (wk)
- Ravindra Jadeja
- Nitish Kumar Reddy/Shardul Thakur
- Kuldeep Yadav
- Jasprit Bumrah
- Mohammed Siraj
- Arshdeep Singh/Prasidh Krishna