Gavaskar took a dig at Kohli, who got permission to leave the tour of Australia to attend the birth of his child, while T Natarajan who became a father during the IPL playoffs is yet to see his daughter.
The legendary cricketer suggests KL Rahul as the opener instead of Prithvi Shaw; Shubman Gill in the lower middle-order.
India were dismissed for 36, their lowest total in Test history. Their previous lowest was 42 at Lord's in England, back in 1974.
The legendary cricketer says Indian players are in Christmas mood after Prithvi Shaw and Jasprit Bumrah drop sitters.
The legendary cricketer says he will be happy to see Pujara bat 15 of the 20 days cricket that would be played during the four-Test series.
Kohli will be returning to India after the Adelaide Test (December 17-21) to be with his wife Anushka Sharma who is expecting their first child.
Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has named his choice for India wicketkeeper in the playing XI for the upcoming four-match Test series against Australia.
Indian vice-captain Rahane will be leading the team in absence of Virat Kohli in last three Test matches against Australia.
Gavaskar said before the inception of IPL in 2008, there was an "incredible and ridiculous animosity" between players.
Gavaskar said that he would prefer using the 12th man as a conduit if the dressing room wants to send him messages while captaining a team.
A concussed Ravindra Jadeja was replaced by Yuzvendra Chahal following India's innings in Canberra with both the players making match-winning contributions much to the frustration of the home side.
Gavaskar also feels that if Hardik Pandya could bowl two or three overs in the shortest format, it will India advantage.
Kohli, after leading India in the first Test at Adelaide, will head back home, leaving a huge void to fill.
The strategy had worked successfully during Australia's home series against New Zealand with Neil Wagner being the architect. Smith had returned with poor numbers by his standards.
Gavaskar also feels that the entire responsibility of India's batting will rest upon vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane and Pujara in the absence of Kohli, who will miss the last three Tests owing to paternity leave.
Singh has been suffering from a kidney ailment and the 58-year-old is on dialysis waiting for a donor for transplant. He was recently also provided financial assistance by the sports ministry.
Kohli had an impressive season with the bat as he scored 466 runs in 15 matches at an average of 42.36. However, it was his captaincy that was questioned by fans.
Rohit, who sustained a left hamstring injury during an IPL game against Kings XI Punjab, was back in the park against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Tuesday, a week after being excluded from the Australia-bound squad on fitness grounds.
Tagged as one of the best finishers, Dhoni managed to score just 200 runs this year without a single half-century, leaving fans disappointed.
The two sales — The Sir Geoffrey Boycott Collection, and Twenty20 Charity Cricket that went live on October 27, feature items from some of the most famous moments in the game.
Top News
Latest News
