India Playing 11 vs Australia- 5th Test, India tour of Australia 2024-25

Beleaguered India will be looking to bounce back when they lock horns against Australia in the fifth and final Test of the ongoing series. The Test is scheduled to be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), Sydney from Friday (January 3).

India have fallen behind in the series after suffering a crushing 184-run loss in the fourth Test in Melbourne. Not much went right for the visitors in the game as Australia thoroughly outplayed them to take an unassailable 2-1 lead in the series.

With India now looking to bounce back and win the upcoming game, here is the India Playing 11 for the fifth India vs Australia Test.

India Playing 11 vs Australia- 5th Test, India tour of Australia 2024-25:

Openers: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma (c)

Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma are likely to be the openers in the India Playing 11 for the upcoming Test. Even though captain Rohit failed to get going in both the innings, the team-management could opt against changing the team combination too much for a must-win game.

Rohit's struggle in the ongoing series continued as he was dismissed cheaply in both the innings in Melbourne. In the first innings, he scored 3 before being sent back for 9 in the second innings. On both the occasions, he was dismissed by Pat Cummins.

Jaiswal, on the other hand, was one of India's best performers in the game. The young opener hit a 80-plus score in both the innings. He scored 82 runs in the first innings before scoring 84 runs in the second innings.

Middle-order batsmen and allrounders:

KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar

KL Rahul is likely to be the number three batsman in the India Playing 11. The right-handed batsman got the start in the first innings of the last Test but failed to convert it into a big score and was out for 24. In the second innings, he could not even open his account.

Virat Kohli had a disappointing outing in the Melbourne Test as the former India captain failed to impress in either of the innings. After scoring 36 runs in the first innings, Kohli was out for only 5 runs in the second innings when India desperately needed him to stay firm.

Rishabh Pant has faced immense criticism for his shot selection in the Melbourne Test and will be desperate to end the series on a good note. In both the innings, Pant threw away his wicket while playing poor shot.

Ravindra Jadeja picked up 4 wickets in the game including 3 wickets in the first innings but could not impress with the bat. However, he is likely to retain his spot in the India Playing 11.

Nitish Reddy had a Test to remember. The allrounder announced his arrival in Tests with a sensational century in the first innings of the Test although he failed to impress in the second innings.

After taking a wicket in the first innings, Washington Sundar scored a fighting fifty with the bat. In the second innings, he went wicketless and remained unbeaten 5 with the bat.

Bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana

The visitors could make one change to the India Playing 11. Akash Deep could make way for Harshit Rana after taking only 2 wickets in the fourth Test.

Jasprit Bumrah is set to lead the attack after taking 9 wickets in Melbourne and will have Mohammed Siraj as his bowling partner.