India's predicted playing XI for the 3rd Test vs England in Rajkot

Following a break of 10 days, India and England will resume battle once again, with the third Test of the five-match series set to commence on Thursday, February 15, in Rajkot.

The hosts have been boosted by the returns of Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Siraj, but KL Rahul hasn't made the grade. Devdutt Padikkal has replaced his state teammate in the squad in the aftermath of a prolific run in domestic cricket.

India's squad for the third Test vs England: Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wk), KS Bharat (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep.

Here is India's predicted playing XI for the third Test against England.

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Openers: Rohit Sharma (c) and Yashasvi Jaiswal

India have been propped up by Yashasvi Jaiswal's batting contributions.

India's opening combination isn't going to change in Rajkot. While Yashasvi Jaiswal has been one of the standout batters so far, Rohit Sharma hasn't hit the ground running in the rubber. The former will want to keep his good form going, and the latter needs to step up in several aspects of his game.

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Middle Order: Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel

Ravindra Jadeja is all set to play at his home venue of Rajkot.

Shubman Gill broke a lean run of form with a century in the second innings of the second Test, allaying any doubts over the No. 3 spot in the side. He should be followed by Rajat Patidar, who couldn't come up with a substantial contribution on debut in Vizag.

With Rahul being ruled out, India are expected to hand Sarfaraz Khan a maiden Test cap. The middle-order batter has piled on the runs for fun at all other levels, and it remains to be seen if he can take to international cricket easily.

The home side could make another change in the batting department, with KS Bharat failing to impress both behind and in front of the stumps. Dhruv Jurel is inexperienced, but he has all the makings of a quality player and could be backed in Rajkot.

If Jadeja is fit, and it seems like he will be, he should walk back into the middle order. Axar Patel hasn't been at his best so far, but with India being rather weak in the batting department, he should retain his place in the side as well.

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Lower Order: Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj

R Ashwin hasn't been at his best so far for India.

Axar and Jadeja featuring in tandem means that India will have to choose between Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj. With the track at Rajkot expected to be flat, the hosts could prefer the latter to complement Jasprit Bumrah, although Kuldeep bowled very well in the last Test.

Bumrah and Ravichandran Ashwin, as the leaders of the pace and spin departments, respectively, will have a lot on their plate in the third Test. The latter, in particular, will want to have a better outing with the ball after having underwhelmed in the first two matches of the series.