Australia vs India 2018-19: India's predicted XI for the Boxing Day Test

Ajinkya Rahane

Rahane looked solid in the second Test

Ajinkya Rahane silenced his critics in the second Test as he notched-up a hard-worked 51 in the first innings followed by a courageous 30 in the second innings. Rahane showed his potential as an overseas specialist while vindicating his selection in the Indian Test team. Rahane will be of the opinion to carry on the same lines in the third Test which would only strengthen the Indian middle-order.

Rishabh Pant (WK)

Although Rishabh Pant was wayward in his approach, the young Indian wicket-keeper batsman made some vital contributions in the second Test. He scored 36 and 30 in the first and the second innings respectively. Both of these knocks proved to be crucial in the context of the game as the former helped India get closer to Australia's first innings total while the latter was in a bid to negate the loss. However, Pant, with his batting, will look to be a tad more reasonable in the third Test.