But Rohit's deplorable form in red-ball in red-ball cricket may have forced this decision.
India's young guns are fearless and mentally hardened by the IPL exposure. But true mettle will be tested when adversity strikes -- and this time, there will be no Kohli to stir up the crowd, no Rohit to deliver a captaincy masterstroke, and no Ashwin to conjure wickets out of nowhere.
India overtook Australia after their thumping 295-run win in the first Test in Perth.
The biggest positives with the bat in Perth were Virat Kohli regaining his rhythm and Jaiswal's coming of age hundred in his debut Test in Australia. Both will look to build on those significant gains in Adelaide.
'If Rohit wants to open, KL should bat at No. 3. Nothing later than that.'
Kohli, Kohli.... the chants from 90,000 fervent fans still reverberate in the ear when you step into the fabled MCG, even two years after the former Indian skipper pulled off a stunning heist against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2022.
Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting advised struggling batters Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith to trust their game akin to star India batter Virat Kohli.
During his gutsy knock on Friday, he became the third highest run getter for India in the World Test Championships with 2032 runs in 52 innings.
Bishan Bedi-led India held the previous record when they thrashed Australia by 222 runs in the Melbourne Test in December 1977.
Now that Kohli has retired from Test cricket, Rajput feels that the cricketing community will miss his supercharged presence.
Former National chairman of selectors MSK Prasad says Nitesh Kumar was identified at the age of 12, and from day one he stood out as a player with abundant talent.
Questions will remain as to why he ended his Test career at the age of 36, despite being one of the fittest cricketers, and why he didn't wait to cross the 10,000-run mark, observes veteran cricket correspondent K R Nayar.
'His capacity for hard work, relentless application and focus, allied to his God-given gifts, has made him a champion every Indian can be proud of.'
His century in the Perth Test during the 2018-2019 series is rated by many as his finest, which Virat Kohli also acknowledges as his best in Australia.
Buoyed by their win in the first Test in Perth, the Indian cricket team arrived in Canberra for the mid-series two-day game against the Australia Prime Minister's XI on November 30 and December 1 ahead of the Pink Ball Test in Adelaide on December 6.
The Perth Test marks Bumrah's second stint as a stand-in captain, having also led his country against England in 2022, and he could not have been dealt a tougher hand.
Hailed as one of Indian cricket's brightest young talents, the 22-year-old Yashasvi Jaiswal made a dazzling start to his Test career.
At the end of the first day of play, it is the home side that is firmly in control, and India that is now reduced to chasing the game.
Virat Kohli: The one who forced Gen-Z to fall in love with Red and Whites
Ravichandran, father of veteran off-spinner Ashwin, said he was caught off guard by his son's sudden retirement from international cricket, but stunningly hinted that there could be underlying reasons for it, including him feeling "humiliated".
'In the last Test match... I had to be honest with myself. I wasn't hitting the ball well. I didn't want to put myself there only because we had dropped the other guys who were struggling as well.'
Bumrah now has 36 wickets on Australian soil, and the batter he's dismissed most times is his opposite number Pat Cummins (6).
In a fiery contest, Jaiswal had his moment of cheeky brilliance against Mitchell Starc, a legendary fast bowler with over 330 Test wickets to his name.
'We have nothing but respect for every Indian cricketer who takes the field on Friday'
The iconic MCG won't have the bounce of Perth or the seam movement of Gabba but it will still be pace-friendly with 6mm of grass covering
While the whole batting unit faltered, the spotlight fell firmly on seniors Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, whose lean patches in recent times have become a matter of concern.
Ashwin's age is certainly a factor that is being kept in consideration.
'What they bring to the table (can) never be written off.'
'She knows everything that goes on behind the scenes.' 'I take pride in performing for the country. Feels amazing, the fact that she's here makes it more special.'
The IPL auction will be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on November 24-25, clashing with the Perth Test scheduled from November 22.
Marsh's fitness has been a major concern for the hosts in the lead up to the pink ball Test, starting Friday.
Former pacer Mitchell Johnson reckons that Australia should drop out-of-form Marnus Labuschagne from the playing XI for the day-night Adelaide Test against India.
Pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah is on the cusp of making history after he went level with former spinner Bishan Singh Bedi for most wickets in an overseas Test series for India.
Nathan McSweeney had a disappointing start to his international career after being ousted by Bumrah for 10 and zero in the first Test at Perth.
Indian cricket has produced a generational superstar in Yashasvi Jaiswal and will remain in good health even when Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma decide to call time on their careers, said former Australia World Cup winner Darren Lehmann.
Virat Kohli and Steve Smith will be "dangerous" and "hungry" for runs in the remaining two Tests
India need to win three of the remaining four Tests in Australia to book their place in the WTC 2025 final.
'(Bumrah) is so unique, and that's with any of the bowlers, really. Every (batter) picks up different cues and goes about it in a different way.'
Just-retired R Ashwin's father Ravichandran kicked up a controversy on Thursday by claiming that "humiliation" could have been a reason for his son's decision to call it quits but the veteran off-spinner made light of the "dad comment", blaming it on lack of media training.
