Australia vs India, 2018-19: 2 changes that India could make in the fourth Test

Team India registered a crushing victory in the Boxing Day Test match against Australia by a huge margin of 137 runs. The batsmen did their job in the first innings and posted a fighting 443/7. When the pitch deteriorated, the Australians had no answers to the sheer class of Bumrah, Shami and Jadeja which helped India stay mighty ahead in the game.

After batting for a brief period in the second innings, the Indians set Australia 399 to win and came out firing all cylinders. They will be high on confidence knowing that they cannot lose the series from here.

The Indian team has been jolted by the absence of the two Sharmas, Rohit and Ishant, ahead of the fourth Test. While Rohit flew back home to attend his new-born daughter, Ishant has sustained an injury to his rib cage.

It is imperative for team India to get the balance of the squad right make the right choices of selection, something which Virat Kohli has been criticized for not making in recent times.

Here are the two changes that India could make in their playing XI for the fourth Test.

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#2 Kuldeep Yadav in for Ishant Sharma

Kuldeep Yadav

India will be without the services of Ishant Sharma during the Sydney Test as he has suffered a niggle to his rib cage. In such circumstances, it is wise to give Kuldeep Yadav a go since the Sydney pitch might offer some turn and Kuldeep deserves it after a prolonged purple patch in the ODI and T20 cricket.

Although Ravichandran Ashwin is India's preferred spinner in Test match cricket, this might be the perfect time to pick Kuldeep ahead of him. Ashwin is still recovering from the injury that he sustained and may not be fully fit.

Kuldeep Yadav has been in red-hot form in limited-overs matches for India in the past year or so. His variations are very hard to decipher for the batsmen who are not used to playing quality spin bowling. Kuldeep flights the ball like a traditional leg-spinner to get turn off the surface and there is nothing fancy about his bowling. Adding Kuldeep to India's line-up will only add to the misery of down-and-out Australian batsmen.

#1 KL Rahul in for Rohit Sharma

KL Rahul

Rohit Sharma flew back home after the birth of his first child and will miss the fourth Test at Sydney. It is a big blow for team India since Rohit was in good knick and striking the ball crisply.

In order to maintain the balance of the team, a specialist batsman should be replaced by none other than a specialist batsman. In such a case, KL Rahul might be the best bet for India to bat in the middle order.

KL Rahul has been playing the new ball poorly and batting in the middle-order would shield him from his nightmare. Also, in the middle-order, he can afford to be free-flowing and back his natural instincts.

Moving down to order could turn out to be the best move for KL Rahul which will help him get back to the run-scoring ways He can be a tailor-made replacement for Rohit Sharma in the fourth Test against Australia.