Pujara replacement: Five options India may consider at No.3

Big name dropped as India name Test squad for West Indies tour

With India keen to make a strong start to the new ICC World Test Championship cycle, we highlight five options that selectors may look at when determining who will win the race to replace Pujara against the West Indies:

Jaiswal shone as an opener for the Rajasthan Royals during the recent Indian Premier League and previously for India at Under 19 level, but it is worth noting the young batting prodigy has been utilised at No.3 against the red ball in recent times.

The 21-year-old managed scores of 213 and 144 when coming in at first drop in his most recent first-class encounter in March for Rest of India against Madhya Pradesh in the Irani Cup and may enjoy the opportunity to make this spot his own if given the chance.

It is worth noting that Jaiswal travelled to England with India's squad as a standby player for the World Test Championship Final against Australia, so there is no doubt the talented left-hander is extremely close to earning a debut.

Gaikwad has been on India's radar for some time now and the 26-year-old earned his maiden ODI cap for his country when making 19 batting at No.3 at home against South Africa in October last year.

It is as an opener that Gaikwad has performed best for Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League over the last couple of years, but the right-hander has a solid technique that could well suit batting at No.3 as evidenced from his six centuries from 28 first-class appearances at domestic level.

Selectors may opt for Gaikwad's added experience over Jaiswal in choosing Pujara's replacement at No.3 and there is every reason to suggest the talented batter can adjust quickly to the rigours of Test cricket.

While Rahane has been used mainly at No.5 for the majority of his Test career, he has batted at first drop in the past - he scored a century when batting here against Sri Lanka in 2015 - and could be used as a stop gap in that position while the younger brigade become accustomed to five-day cricket.

Rahane showed his class with scores of 89 and 46 in the recent World Test Championship Final and has received an added show of support from selectors by having the vice-captaincy tag added to his name for this series.

A promotion to No.3 would provide Rahane with even more responsibility and the 35-year-old has shown previously he has the technique to prosper in the difficult batting position.

While there is no doubting the talent of Gill, the classy right-hander is yet to really fulfil his talent as an opener at Test level with an average of just 32.89 and two centuries from 16 Tests.

If selectors see Jaiswal or Gaikwad as a long-term opening prospect, then they may choose to push Gill down to No.3 as an interim solution just until the new breed have established themselves in the side.

The move may also help Gill - who managed scores of just 13 and 18 in the World Test Championship Final - as it could allow him to watch India's openers closely and see if opposition bowlers are extracting any movement from the pitch.

It's unlikely that Kohli will move from his favoured No.4 position, but the former India captain has been used at first drop in the past and is another option that selectors may ponder.

The last time Kohli was used at No.3 at Test level was when he was captain way back in 2016 and it netted the 34-year-old scores of just three and four in Gros Islet also against the West Indies as India claimed a commanding 237-run triumph.

In a similar vein to Rahane, a move up one spot may provide India's inexperienced brigade more protection from the new ball and provide a short-term solution.

India’s Test squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), KS Bharat (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Navdeep Saini.