India's predicted XI in Tests after five years

The Indian cricket team are currently the no. 1 Test side in the world. However, they are facing a tough time in England as they are 2-0 down in the five-match Test series.

With three matches to go, we could expect the Indian side to go in with a few changes for the remaining Tests in order to make a comeback.

However, given the fact that quite a few players are not playing well in Tests outside India, the team needs a shake-up. In the coming few years, we could see an overhaul, with some youngsters coming into the side and a few seniors making way.

It will be interesting to see what the team will look like five years down the line. Will Virat Kohli be the captain? Will he still be in the team?

Here is a predicted playing XI in 2023:

Openers:

Prithvi Shaw

Currently just 18 years old, Prithvi Shaw led the Indian Under-19 team to World Cup glory last year. He was India’s second highest scorer with the bat with 261 runs to his name. His technique and style of play have been compared with the legendary Sachin Tendulkar and what is even more interesting is that he uses an MRF sponsored bat as well.

He played in the IPL this year with the Delhi Daredevils as well and made a name for himself. He is surely one for the future.

KL Rahul

At the age of 26, KL Rahul is already a mainstay for the Indian cricket team in all three formats. He has a superb technique and great hand-eye coordination as well.

Rahul has been moved a lot in the batting order as he has opened the batting and batted at no.3 and no.4 as well. However, we could expect him to open the batting soon and cement his place at the top.

Middle-order:

Hanuma Vihari

The 24-year-old was the leading run scorer in the Ranji Trophy last year and has been in great form ever since. He was a part of the India A squad which toured England and was one of the leading run scorers there.

With the way he is going, he could surely make his debut for the Indian team soon. He could be the perfect replacement for Cheteshwar Pujara at no. 3.

Virat Kohli

We could expect the Indian captain to continue playing a long time from now. With the way he is batting and destroying every opposition he encounters, he could go to play for another 5-7 years with ease.

However, it will be interesting to see if he continues to captain the side five years down the line. He is currently leading the Indian team in England.

Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Iyer

The 23-year-old lad from Mumbai has been one of the best domestic performers over the past couple of years. He has been rewarded with an ODI and T20I debut for the Indian cricket team and it won’t be long before he makes his Test debut as well.

He led the Delhi Daredevils this year and despite them finishing at the bottom, there were a lot of positives to be looked at.

He could be a future captain of the Indian Test side if he continues to play well.

Rishabh Pant

The youngster Rishabh Pant is all set to make his Test debut for the Indian cricket team today against England. This could be the first of many Tests he plays for the country.

His attacking style of play is what makes him so special and he could be extremely handy lower down the order in the years to come.

He could emulate someone Adam Gilchrist since he is a left-handed batsman as well.

Hardik Pandya

The 24-year-old from Baroda is equally impressive with the bat as he is with the ball. A lot of people have questioned his place in the Test side but he has always proved them wrong with his performances on the field.

We could only expect him to get better with each passing year. He has been compared to Kapil Dev and in a few years, we could probably see him become as successful as the Indian legend.

Navdeep Saini

The 25-year-old medium pacer from Delhi was recently included in the Test squad for the Afghanistan Test in Bangalore but was not given a chance to play.

He was one of the leading wicket-takers in the Ranji Trophy last year and has been very impressive with the India A side as well. We could surely see him make his debut for the Indian team soon and pick up a whole lot of wickets.

Bowlers

Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav did not play too well against England at Lord’s recently but we all know what he is capable of with the ball. Currently, he is just 23 years old and he has a lot of time ahead of him to play consistently well.

He has proved to be extremely troublesome for the opposition batsmen with his leg-breaks and his googlies. He will surely cement his place in the Test side soon enough.

Jasprit Bumrah

At the age of 24, Jasprit Bumrah is one of the leading pacers for the Indian cricket team in all formats of the game.

He can swing the ball and bowl extremely tight lines to the batsmen to dismiss them. He will surely be around with the team for many years to come and we could expect him to lead the bowling attack five years down the line.

Mohammed Siraj

The 24-year-old from Hyderabad has had a great journey so far. He has been amongst the wickets for India A lately and we could expect him to make his Test debut soon.

He had a forgetful few games in the T20 format in India colours and he will look to put that behind him when he plays for them next.

He was impressive in the IPL this year and has grown a lot as a bowler.