Prithvi Shaw has finally been given the chance to make it to the senior team as he makes his debut in red ball cricket and becomes India's 293rd Test player. The youngster plays his maiden match against West Indies in the 1st Test in Rajkot. (IND vs WI Live Score)
At a raw age of 19, Shaw made a name in first-class cricket with his impressive play, which reminded the fans of Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar.
Shaw, who earned a maiden call-up midway into the England tour but did not get a game, has been preferred over Mayank Agarwal for the series opener.
The youngster also led India to win the ICC U-19 trophy for a record fourth time and after being under the guidance of legend Rahul Dravid, Shaw is ready to show the world what he has made of.
Agarwal had broken into the team after scoring tons of runs in domestic cricket and at India A level. What is also clear now is that India will go in with five specialist bowlers and the most likely 12th man will be Shardul Thakur.
Three specialist spinners -- Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav -- have been picked and the pace pairing will be of Mohammad Shami and Umesh Yadav.
Hanuma Vihari, who had a made gritty 56 on debut at The Oval against England, has been dropped.
Wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant will bat at six while Jadeja will be expected to make vital lower-order contributions in the absence of injured all-rounder Hardik Pandya.
The West Indies series presents a good opportunity for Shaw to make his case for the upcoming Australia tour as pointed out by captain Virat Kohli, who said the top-order is the only area where experimentation is needed.
(With PTI Inputs)
