Kohli surpassed Mahendra Singh Dhoni to become the most successful Indian Test captain.
Justin Langer said the contest would likely be an exciting one thanks to the two teams being evenly-matched.
'I believe whichever bowlers will play -- like Umesh (Yadav) is doing well, Ishant (Sharma) is a senior bowler and has to take more lead (role) and Mohammed Shami has a good record - I believe their (Bhuvi and Bumrah's) absence will be felt, but still India's bench strength is very strong'
Rohit Sharma and Hanuma Vihari will battle for a place in the Indian team for the first Test.
Jadeja, who suffered a concussion during the first T20 international, also sustained a hamstring injury which ruled him out of the first Test.
Former Australia captain Ian Chappell has advocated a review of on-field safety measures in cricket, saying it would be a good idea to "strengthen any law" that can protect tailenders when they face short-pitched bowling.
Dhoni's contract not being renewed is not exactly a surprise as he has not played a competitive game since that World Cup semifinal on July
Fast bowler Mohammed Shami picked up a five-wicket haul while left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja took four in South Africa's second innings to hand India a convincing 203-run victory, in the opening Test.
Help Captain Kohli and Head Coach Shastri pick India's XI for the Rajkot Test.
'Obviously we need a lot of more experience with that ball, but it's a great time for us to play a day-night Test'
Rohit Sharma will certainly leave a gaping hole at the top of the order, something that skipper Virat Kohli wouldn't have fancied at the onset of a gruelling two-month tour.
The International Cricket Council said India was granted permission to wear camouflage military caps in the third ODI against Australia in Ranchi as a tribute to the country's armed forces, a gesture which Pakistan has objected to.
Virat Kohli's side are determined to keep the momentum rolling into the second clash in Perth and inch closer to a breakthrough series triumph Down Under.
More than the runs scored, it is the manner of his dismissals that is causing frustration, considering that the Indian cricket establishment has invested heavily in the 21-year-old from Rourkee.
Cheteshwar Pujara is confident that history will repeat itself in Australia this time.
IMAGES from the 1st ODI between Australia and India played at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Friday
The team will have to leave out either Yadav or Chahal and also decide which all-rounder between Kedar Jadhav and Vijay Shankar to field.
After India outplayed Australia with bat and ball in Melbourne, Captain Virat Kohli is convinced India have the firepower to break new ground.
Having won the series, India would like to carry on momentum forward, especially with the three-match T20I series to follow soon after. Yet, the visitors would also like to find a balance between going all out in a dead rubber and resting a few players keeping in mind a long overseas schedule later this year.
The Indian Masters, co-sanctioned by The European Tour, the Asian Tour and the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) and set to be played at the Delhi Golf Club, New Delhi, from February 5 to 8, will not take place because of the current economic uncertainty and security concerns.
'Without a word of a lie, I promise you, I called (coach) Justin Langer a few months ago and said, 'Don't worry about Davey, he'll be man-of-the-tournament'.'
Nathan Ellis says the IPL stint in the UAE is bound to provide him valuable experience going into the T20 World Cup.
The BCCI has officially confirmed that India's pace spearhead Mohammed Shami has been ruled out of the ongoing Indian Premier League due to a knee injury sustained during the ICC World Cup last month.
Chinappa lost 6-11, 12-10, 7-11, 11-8, 3-11 to Camille in a 70-minute marathon tussle on Wednesday.
'I don't know how we approach this kind of an itinerary where you go for a holiday in between and then come back to play Test matches. One week break was enough post the WTC final. The thing is you need to play continuously. I am amazed this itinerary was approved.'
Pandya's absence means that India will have to rejig their bowling attack. Jasprit Bumrah has already been rested for this series, as well as the tour of New Zealand, and this allows the think-tank to conduct one final experimentation with their bowling attack.
The intent has always been honest and that precisely is the reason for the stupendous results that the Indian cricket team is currently delivering, skipper Virat Kohli said.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India is all set to monitor workload of top 50 Indian cricketers, starting with the seven-week Indian Premier League, and will create a database for their workload and injury management to keep them fresh for big international assignments.
These 12 images that prove we live in a wonderfully weird world!
Rajneesh Gupta explains how team India performed during the year across all the three formats.
Australian captain Tim Paine said a 'proud' cricketing nation like India is not going to roll over in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne like they did in the series opener in Adelaide and singled out KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant as potential threats.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar looks set for a long injury lay-off after it emerged that the pacer had been carrying sportsman's hernia all along which the doctors failed to notice, according to media reports. He is now scheduled to undergo surgery for sports hernia -- which he has been carrying for over a period of three months -- after which he will have to undergo a two-month recovery period.
Virat Kohli is the second fastest behind Don Bradman to score 25 Test hundreds, notes Rajneesh Gupta.
India retained the Border-Gavaskar trophy with a historic three-wicket win over Australia in the fourth and final Test, in Brisbane, successfully chasing a 328-run target to seal the four-match series 2-1.
Since Dhawan is not part of the Test squad, the Delhi left-hander would like to finish the Caribbean assignment on a high.
India's three-match ODI campaign against South Africa starting on Thursday where the hosts would be aiming to put the 'New Zealand Nightmare' behind them.
Harish Kotian's analysis of the Indian squad for the upcoming tour of England.
Indian cricket team, led by skipper Virat Kohli, on Thursday reached St Kitts to play a four-Test bilateral series against the West Indies starting with the opening match at Antigua on July 21.
India's vice captain KL Rahul on Sunday said that Jasprit Bumrah and Co. have endured hard lessons in adapting to conditions so far and it is not a surprise that wickets have been hard to come by on batting-friendly Australian tracks.
Close on the heels of Parveez Rasool's selection in the Indian team for the Zimbabwe tour, another Jammu and Kashmir cricketer Shubham Khajuria was on Wednesday selected in the India Under-19 squad for the tour of Sri Lanka.
