India's predicted playing XI for the 1st Test vs England

Middle Order: Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wk)

Australia were stonewalled into submission by Che Pujara

Captain Virat Kohli will return to his preferred No. 4 slot, and he will be flanked on either side by Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane.

While Pujara stonewalled the Aussies into submission Down Under by spending hours at the crease, Rahane led the team admirably in Kohli's absence. Both players were in decent nick in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and they'll be keen on replicating that success at home as well.

The spotlight will be firmly on the Indian skipper, who didn't score a single century in the entirety of 2020. Kohli's credentials as a captain have also been brought into question, but the Indian team management has been quick to state that criticism can't be levelled at someone whose win percentage in Test cricket is around 70.

Kohli will be itching to get back amongst the runs, and it's highly likely that he'll explode into form in this series and further his standing as the best all-format batsman in the world.

Following the experienced trio will be young Rishabh Pant, who was the hero of India's comeback in the Test series against Australia. The 23-year-old has played only two Test innings at home, and has twin scores of 92 to show for.

There were rumours floating around that India could hand Wriddhiman Saha the gloves and play Pant as a specialist batsman to have some added insurance behind the stumps in turning conditions. But to do that, India would have to go in with only 4 bowlers, which might not be the best idea given the team's recent injury history.

As a result, Pant will have a task on his hands on the Chennai wicket, which has historically been slow and low.