India vs West Indies: 5 biggest positives for India from this series

India vs West Indies started without much hype, but everyone was anxious about how this new look team will perform as some of the senior players were either rested or axed from the side after a long tour of England.

There was no doubt about the fact that India were the firm favourites to emerge victorious from this series but the visitors are having one of their best years as far as the red ball cricket is concerned.

While the first match at Rajkot was lopsided and India won the Test without much fuss, there was a lot of speculation that Mayank Agarwal will be included in the playing eleven, but the host decided to give Rahul another go.

This particular series may not be an ideal preparation before the all-important Australia tour but this was used a tour to test the bench strength of the hosts. In that regard, we will see five of the biggest positives to come of the series.

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#5 Jadeja's performance with the bat

India's best all-rounder at the moment.

Ravindra Jadeja is having a fantastic couple of months with the bat in international cricket. He has done well in the domestic arena in the past but was not a success playing for India. But it all changed in the final Test match at the Oval where he came close in scoring a century.

He then was drafted into the Asia Cup squad after a gap of almost a year and did well in which the tournament. And in the home series against the WIndies, he scored his maiden international century in a decade-long career for India. This batting performance from him bodes well for the team.

#4 Rishabh Pant's rise in the ranks

The heir to Dhoni.

Rishabh Pant may have struggled a bit with the gloves in the England tour, but when it comes to his batting, he is improving with each outing and getting used to the longer format of the game.

If the final Test match against the English marked his arrival in the red ball cricket where he scored a scintillating century in the fourth innings, he continued from where he left in the first Test against the visiting West Indies.

Even in the Second Test, when India was under pressure, he showed maturity and composure in helping India from further collapse. With some more impressive performances, Pant is sure to be holding a place for his own in the Test side given Saha's injury woes and Dinesh Karthik's continuous failure with the bat. His rapid rise will give a sigh of relief for the team management after Dhoni's retirement.

#3 Rahane's batting in this series

His contributions will be important in Australia.

With the likes of Murali Vijay, and Shikhar Dhawan dropped from the team, the onus is now on Pujara, Kohli, and Rahane to perform as they are the senior most players in this new look Indian outfit. He seemed scratchy in the First Test match but bailed India out of trouble in the second Test match along with Pant.

Ajinkya Rahane will be an important asset when India tours Australia, and his contributions will be invaluable to team's cause in their bid to secure maiden series win down under. He just needs one big inning which could a start of a purple patch for Rahane.

The team management certainly has faith in Rahane and have given him a long rope despite his failures for the past few seasons. He needs to repay the faith by making some match-winning performances along the way.

#2 Umesh Yadav's career-best performance

He bowled his heart out.

Umesh Yadav is only playing this Test series because the regular bowlers have been rested after the hectic England tour, and Asia cup. But, he has led the pace attack well after an early injury to Shardul Thakur.

He bowled his heart in unresponsive Hyderabad track and achieved his career-best figures in the process. He may not be a starter in the team for the Australia tour but can be a useful commodity in those conditions.

Umesh Yadav has been unlucky to miss out on a spot in Test XI, largely due to the emergence of Jasprit Bumrah and his rapid rise meant the former had to sit out in the bench. But if he continues his good run of form with the ball, Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be under tremendous pressure to pressure to perform as Ishant looks a certainty in the side.

#1 Prithvi Shaw's debut

The new kid on the block.

Prithvi Shaw made his much-awaited Test debut against the West Indies at Rajkot and made a memorable century. Many players have made a century on their debuts in the past but this one is special.

He is long regarded as the next been thing in Indian cricket long before he made his FC debut. He is already been compared to the great Sachin himself at such a young age.

Prithvi Shaw is playing with a lot of intent, and tons of maturity. No doubt that he will be tested in Australia but he has the game to adapt to any situation and will be looking forward to playing down under against a potent but inexperienced Aussie attack.

With Vijay and Dhawan out of the Test team, for the time being, he will look to seal a spot for himself in the side with consistent performances.