5 players for whom this might be the last chance in the Test side

After a well-contested T20 series, India and Australia will lock horns in the highly anticipated Test series. After the 4-1 drubbing against England, Team India got their act together in the series against West Indies. On the other hand, after a glimmer of hope in the drawn first Test against Pakistan in Dubai, Australia's dismal performance, that begun after the ban on Steve Smith and David Warner has extended.

The Australian team is looking vulnerable in the absence of Smith and Warner and thus this series is considered to be India's best chance of winning a Test series on Australian soil. However, the Indian team will be wary of the lack of form of some crucial players.

Indian batsmen, in particular, received a lot of flak for their horrible show in England. Majority of the Indian batsmen struggled in England and will be fighting for their careers in the series against Australia. Moreover, the competition for a place in the national side is extremely tough and there is a barrage of young players eager to pounce on the opportunity of playing for the country.

We will look at 5 players for whom this is the last chance in the Test side.

#5 Parthiv Patel

Parthiv Patel in action against England

Parthiv Patel was surprisingly included in the Test side for the tour of Australia. The southpaw was dropped from the Test side after the series against South Africa earlier this year and his career seemed to be all but over. However, because of Wriddhiman Saha's injury and Dinesh Karthik's poor performance in England, Patel made it to the Test side.

But Parthiv will be aware of the fact that this might be his last chance in the Indian team. Rishabh Pant is already India's number one choice wicket-keeper in Tests and Saha is bound to make a comeback at some point in time. If Parthiv gets a chance and he fails to perform well, it might be the end of his international career.

#4 Rohit Sharma

Rohit struggled in the Test series against South Africa

The saga of Rohit Sharma and his unfulfilled Test dream continues. The immensely talented batsman has baffled fans and the cricket fraternity with his failures in Test cricket over time. After being given ample opportunities at the Test level, the selectors finally ran out of patience and dropped Rohit from the Test side after a poor series against South Africa.

However, with some senior batsmen failing miserably against England, Rohit, owing to his reputation of being a good back foot player, was selected in the Test side for the Australian series.

Rohit will know that his comeback is nothing less than a double-edged sword. While a good show against Australia might do him a world of good and help him re-establish himself as a Test batsman, failure against the Aussies might end his Test career once and for all.

#3 KL Rahul

Rahul will be looking for consistency

One of the major disappointments in recent times has been KL Rahul. With the kind of talent that Rahul possess, his performances have been underwhelming, to say the least.

The Karnataka batsman has shown glimpses of his talent but hasn't been consistent enough and has often crumbled under pressure. In the series against England, Rahul was guilty of faulty shot selections. Barring his magnificent effort in the second innings of the last Test, Rahul looked completely out of sorts throughout the Test series and failed to score even a single half-century in the first four Tests.

His poor run of form extended in the series against West Indies too as he scored just 37 runs in two Tests. And even though the Indian coaching staff is backing Rahul to come good in Australia, the opener will be aware of the fact that he cannot take his place in the Indian Test side for granted.

#2 Murali Vijay

Vijay had a good time playing for Essex

Murali Vijay got a surprise call-up to the Indian Test team. Vijay had a torrid time in the series against England as he scored a paltry 26 runs in two Tests. He bagged a pair in the second Test at Lords and was subsequently dropped from the side for the remainder of the series.

While it seemed like Vijay's Test career was as good as over, the right-hand batsman played for Essex in the county cricket in England and stacked up a decent number of runs. Vijay made 4 fifty plus scores, including a hundred, in the five innings for Essex which paved the way for his comeback.

Another thing that went into Vijay's favour was his record in Australia. Vijay scored 482 runs at an average of 60.25 during India's last tour of Australia in 2014-15.

With age not on his side and domestic performers like Mayank Agarwal breathing down his neck, Vijay will have to score big to retain his place in the Indian Test team.

#1 Ajinkya Rahane

Time is running out for Rahane

Ajinkya Rahane, who was considered to be India's best batsman overseas not too long ago, founds himself in a very peculiar position.

After a below-par Test series against England, where he scored just two half-centuries in five Tests, Rahane was expected to use the matches against West Indies to get back to form. And even though he did reasonably well, Rahane was nowhere near his best.

Rahane, who had a good time playing in Australia in 2014-15, will look to regain his lost confidence against Australia. However, with Rohit Sharma and Hanuma Vihari in the squad, the Indian vice-captain will know that he will have to score big runs right from the word go.

While the Indian team will desperately want him to get back in top form, Rahane will know that one more poor series might end his journey with the Indian team.