Stand-in captain Rahul Dravid won the toss and elected to bat against Australia in the rain-hit fourth and final Test on Wednesday.

Scorecard

India, who have already lost the series 2-0, picked two uncapped players in their side -- opener Gautam Gambhir for Aakash Chopra and wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik for Parthiv Patel.

The hosts opted for three spinners for the match with Zaheer Khan as the only genuine paceman.

Sachin Tendulkar, who bowls occasional spin, is expected to open the bowling for the first time in his career with his wobbly seamers.

India are still without captain Sourav Ganguly, who has a groin strain.

Australian skipper Ricky Ponting returned to his team after missing the first three Tests due to injury. The visitors are without Shane Warne, who is out with a broken thumb.

Off-spinner Nathan Hauritz comes in for Warne to make his Test debut.

The start of the match was delayed for four and a half hours due to heavy rain since early morning. Only 48 overs will be bowled on Wednesday and more rain is forecast for Thursday.

The series victory was Australia's first on Indian soil since 1969.

Teams:

India - Rahul Dravid (captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, Vangipurappu Laxman, Mohammad Kaif, Dinesh Karthik, Murali Kartik, Harbhajan Singh, Anil Kumble, Zaheer Khan.

Australia - Ricky Ponting (captain), Justin Langer, Matthew Hayden, Simon Katich, Damien Martyn, Michael Clarke, Adam Gilchrist, Nathan Hauritz, Jason Gillespie, Michael Kasprowicz, Glenn McGrath.

• Check the players' stats

Umpires: Rudi Koertzen (South Africa), Aleem Dar (Pakistan); Third umpire: K.Hariharan (India)

Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka)

• Check the squads for the fourth Test

Also read:
- Injured Warne to miss fourth Test
- Gambhir, Karthik to make debut: Dravid
- Ponting eyes winning finish
- Designer outfits for Ganguly
Letter from Langer: The pitch looks as dry as a desert