India's fielding coach T Dilip has praised the team's "incredible" fielding efforts during their 3-0 ODI series sweep against England.
At his former franchise Delhi Capitals, the captaincy became a point of contention, leading Pant to opt out of DC's retention plans after unsuccessful negotiations.
'If Rohit wants to open, KL should bat at No. 3. Nothing later than that.'
India would be thoroughly justified in thinking their misfiring opening pair have let them down.
India managed to keep the five-Test series level at 1-1 heading into the Boxing day Test in Melbourne, the fragility of their top order remains a major concern for the tourists.
KL Rahul (64 not out) helped India chase down their target with 40 balls remaining
India play 2 Tests versus Bangladesh, followed by three against New Zealand before the big-ticket five Test Border Gavaskar Trophy against Australia Down Under.
Gavaskar, a revered opener during his playing days, said the 22-year-old Jaiswal has "the cricketing world at his feet".
India will have to wait until day two to show their skills and may need early wickets to force a third consecutive result in the series.
There has been a lot of speculations about K L Rahul's future as LSG skipper after his 'public reprimand' by team owner Sanjiv Goenka.
'Virat and Rohit not playing (Duleep Trophy) was not good for Indian cricket, nor was it good for the two players. Had they played the Duleep Trophy and had some time in the red-ball cricket, things would have been different.'
Shami marked his return to ICC tournament with an exceptional five-for while also becoming the fastest Indian and the second quickest overall to reach 200 ODI wickets
India fight back against Australia as 17 wickets tumble on opening day
While India are on a high after a measured six-wicket win over a sprightly Bangladesh, Pakistan are evidently tense after the 60-run loss in the tournament-opener to New Zealand.
Earlier, opting to bowl, the Indian bowlers led by debutant Harshal Patel (2/25) put on a brilliant display as the hosts restricted New Zealand to just 153/6.
India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul has conceded that he found the continued criticism directed at him painful and puzzling especially when his performance was not that bad.
Zaheer named 16 players in his squad, with the caveat that only one player between Gujarat Titans' captain Shubman Gill and Rajasthan Royals' opener Yashasvi Jaiswal will be selected as Rohit Sharma's opening partner.
IMAGES from the first Test played between South Africa and India in Centurion on Tuesday
India will be under tremendous pressure when they face an equally circumspect Australia in a battle of two out-of-form batting units in the opening Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Perth
Former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel feels there is "no harm" in trying Yash Dayal in place of either Jasprit Bumrah or Mohammed Siraj for the second Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur, beginning on Friday.
Seamer Mohammed Shami claimed career-best figures of 5-51 and India's frontline batters gave a good account themselves to secure their five-wicket victory against Australia in the opening One-Day International on Friday.
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar believes Virat Kohli needs to relax and not overthink his form ahead of India's crucial Champions Trophy clash against Pakistan.
Boland credited his intense rehabilitation for getting him back in the national reckoning.
The national selectors on Sunday retained the Indian team, which hammered Bangladesh by 280 runs in the opening Test here, for the second and final match in Kanpur.
In case Rohit misses a Test match in Australia, the in-form Abhimanyu Easwaran is likely to be his cover although Shubman Gill and KL Rahul are also players with enough experience in the opening slot.
Head smashed a swashbuckling hundred to fetch Australia a first innings lead of 157 at his home ground the Adelaide Oval.
SL executed their plans well against the Indian batters, who are not the cleverest performers on rank turners, while not many are though.
India's bid to win a 17th consecutive home Test series, however, hinges on the success of their three-pronged spin attack comprising Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel.
Throughout the series, Konstas had altercations with Indian players. His first major incident occurred at the iconic MCG during the Boxing Day Test when he was involved in a bumping exchange with Virat Kohli. Usman Khawaja, who was batting at the other end, was seen trying to calm things down.
Gambhir said Kishan has done enough to earn a spot in the Indian side.
India head coach Rahul Dravid, has asked KL Rahul to be "ready to keep wickets and bat in middle-order" in ODIs going ahead.
Siraj, who played a vital role in India's win in the opening ODI at Guwahati taking two wickets, said during the innings break on Thursday that Rahul noticed that the ball had stopped doing its bit after only the first over and that a new strategy would have to be employed against the experienced batting order.
Former England captain David Gower said the mercurial Rishabh Pant performs what 'others can only dream of and takes incredible to another level.'
'I think there was a fair bit of good bowling today. Obviously there was enough in the wicket and it probably felt like it was a hardball wicket.'
Former Australia pacer Brett Lee said the Indian team should make in-form batter KL Rahul the 'pillar' around whom its innings is built to ease the pressure on skipper Virat Kohli during this month's T20 World Cup in the UAE.
'When you don't score runs in India, obviously you will get flak. KL Rahul hasn't been the only one'
Images from the first One-Day International between India and England in Nagpur, on Thursday.
Shubman Gill dispelled all doubts about his thumb injury with a stylish fifty even as skipper Rohit Sharma kept cards close to his chest by coming in at No. 4 in India's curtailed pink-ball warm-up game against Prime Minister's XI in Canberra on Sunday.
Rohit, who had missed the first Test, dropped down to the number six spot in the pink ball Test after KL Rahul excelled at the top in the series opener in his absence.
India's 40-4 (win-loss) home record in the last decade is awe-inducing but there is an ever-little crack, which is getting more pronounced in the past three years, particularly in the case of star batter Virat Kohli.
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