India's best Test XI for overseas conditions

India started as the number one team in the start of 2018, and they will be number one at the beginning of 2019 as well. Virat Kohli, in the process, has become the first Asian captain to register Test wins in South Africa, England and Australia.

He has already won Test matches in Sri Lanka and West Indies. The master batsman is also in touching distance of overhauling Ganguly's 11 overseas wins and MS Dhoni's 27 Test wins as an Indian captain.

Indian Test team under Kohli is doing most things right. They are already a formidable force in home conditions and no team even remotely stands a chance in sub-continental conditions and press for a series win. India usually scores big in home conditions and touring teams wilt under mounting scoreboard pressure.

There was enough proof of this when England had visited India in 2016/17, where the Englishmen scored over 400 on two occasions and still lost both those Tests by an innings margin.

India's real Test was on the foreign shores, and they have done reasonably well. South Africa and England might not have gone their way, but there was a lot of promise shown. With a bit of luck, maybe India would have been triumphant. However, India's performances against Australia has given a lot of hope to many that Indian cricket team is set to dominate the arena in the next few years.

Virat Kohli is the world's best batsman and an aggressive captain who thinks only about winning. India also has a strong batting line-up with the likes of Pujara and Rahane. The young batsmen like Mayank, Prithvi Shaw and Vihari have shown they have the class to succeed in International cricket. But it's the bowling that makes it exciting for Team India.

India probably is the only side in the world which has an artillery of fast bowlers and an army of spinners. India's recent overseas performances showed that they did not allow any opposition to score 400. Only three centuries (one each from Cook, Root and Buttler) were scored against India in 2018. This clearly shows that India can knock any opposition irrespective of the conditions.

If Indian team management can pick the right teams and keep its players fit, they will be firm favourites going into the World Test Championship in 2021.

Openers - Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal

Prithvi Shaw, for some time, has been described as the next big thing in Indian cricket. Shaw is a product of the famed Mumbai school of batting. Shaw is a classy stroke-maker who can play some fabulous shots. He showed great temperament in his debut series against Windies by scoring a quickfire hundred and a fifty.

He even won the Man-of-the-series award and hit the winning runs only in his second Test match. He might have missed an all-important series against Australia, but he is the one to stay and has the game to succeed in all conditions

Mayank Agarwal's exploits with the bat in the tour down under will surely cement his place in the Indian Test squad. Agarwal arrived into the scene as a dashing batsman, who initially played for RCB and enthralled the fans with some exciting cameos. Soon, he rediscovered himself in the tutelage of Rahul Dravid and became a better long-format batsman.

Agarwal showed a compact technique against the Aussie quickies and played spin really well. Agarwal has made tons of runs at the first-class level and going by the statistics, he could be the next Sehwag India is looking for.

Middle-order - Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane

India's batting mainstays

Cheteshwar Pujara is the new wall, who plays Test cricket in the classical mould. Pujara is probably the only batsman after Englan's Alastair Cook who likes to bat time and grinds down the bowlers. His recent performances in England and Australia showed that he can adapt his game in gruelling conditions and still come up trumps. Pujara is the mainstay of Indian batting and his performance goes a long way in providing the ideal foundation to mount a big score in tough conditions.

Virat Kohli is a batting gargantuan and has announced himself as the world's best batsman. Delhi Master has a strong bottom-hand technique and adaptability is his biggest strength. He dominates attacks and plays fast bowling and spin with equal panache. Virat has now made a habit to score big centuries and he is the only batsman in the history of the game to score four double hundreds in four consecutive series and the only batsman to score five centuries in 2018, out of which four came on overseas shores.

Ajinkya Rahane is a gutsy batsman who has a wide range of shots. Rahane is predominantly a backfoot player who plays the cut shot and the backfoot drive really well. In recent times, he has struggled against off-spinners, but a batsman of his calibre will overcome such issues. Rahane has performed well in overseas conditions and with more matches, under his belt, he will be an even better performer.

All-Rounders - Hanuma Vihari & Ravindra Jadeja and Wicketkeeper - Rishabh Pant

Hanuma Vihari is a middle-order batsman from Andhra who has scored a plethora of runs in FC cricket. Vihari came into the national side after some impressive performances for India A team. Armed with a proper technique and a temperament that suits the longer format, Vihari can be a permanent solution to India's quest for a talented number six batsman. He is also a useful off-spinner who bowls with guile and breaks crucial partnerships.

Ravindra Jadeja is a left-arm spinner who perfectly complements his spin-twin Ashwin or the fast-bowlers as he showed in Australia. Jadeja bowls his overs at lightning speed and builds pressure on the batsmen by bowling a lot of dot balls. Jadeja has had a significant contribution to India's dominating performances at home. His recent performances in England and Australia show, why he has pipped Ashwin to become the number one spinner and Kohli's go-to man in all conditions.

Rishabh Pant is an exciting talent who has come to the national side with a string of impressive performances at the U-19 and India A tours. Pant seems to be a safe wicketkeeper who has shown a lot of maturity behind the stumps. The biggest positive has been his aggressive batting in the tours of England and Australia. Pant has joined the great Sachin Tendulkar by scoring his two Test centuries at the age of 21. In the years to come, he is undoubtedly going to be a superstar and India's Adam Gilchrist.

Fast bowlers - Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami

Ishant Sharma

India can be proud of developing a bowling group that is versatile and deadly at the same time. An Indian Test cricket fan can proudly say that India now has developed five wicket-taking fast bowlers who will deliver in all conditions.

Ishant Sharma has finally come off age and has emerged as the leader of the attack. He hits the pitch hard and generates steep movement. A 90-Test veteran, Ishant has become more consistent with his bowling and builds pressure on the batsmen by bowling tight lines. He bowls at 140 kph and is quite adept with the old ball in generating swing in the air and movement of the pitch. Sharma has a natural in-swinger and bowls away swinger which straightens from middle and off.

Mohammed Shami burst into the scene as a tearaway quick and showed immense talent in his very first Test match against West Indies in 2013. He bowls over 140 kph and is very adept with the old ball if there is reverse swing on offer. Shami has delivered when India needs him the most. Shami is the ideal third seamer who can bowl first change. If Shami gets his radar right, he can be hostile and will run through the opposition with disconcerting ease as we got to see in Johannesburg and Perth.

Jasprit Bumrah is a brilliant bowler who can change lengths at will and has superb variations. Sanjay Manjrekar keeps mentioning that Bumrah is the bowling equivalent of a 360-degree batsman. Bumrah has improved with every game that he has played and bowled with pace and hostility. Bumrah made giant strides in South Africa and consolidated his position in England. However, he has come off age in the Australian tour and shown great temperament and match-awareness.