While Agarwal has aggregated just 31 in the four Test innings he has played, Vihari has 45 in three innings.

 

If India bring in Rohit Sharma, he would be playing competitive cricket for the first time in almost two months. The 33-year-old Rohit, who has also been named the vice-captain for the remainder of the series, has also not played a red-ball game since November 2019 and has only a few days of net practice in Australia to get his bearings ahead of the third Test.

 

India head coach Ravi Shastri had said after the win at Melbourne Cricket Ground that Rohit would not straightaway walk into the Test side and the team management will observe him in the nets before taking a call.

 

There have also been talks of retaining the opening partnership of Agarwal and Shubman Gill and not changing the batting line-up at all.

 

India also face a headache in the bowling department. With both Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami out due to injuries, the Ajinkya Rahane-led side will now have to consider bringing in one of Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur or T Natarajan into the playing XI to support Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. Thakur and Natarajan have replaced Shami and Umesh.

 

India could also go in with just two pace bowlers and include another specialist spinner, Kuldeep Yadav to add to the Ashwin-Jadeja duo considering that the surface at the Sydney Cricket Ground is generally spin-friendly.

 

Australia coach Justin Langer on Tuesday acknowledged that India's bowling has helped them win three out of the last six Tests in Australia so far.

 

"India, their greatest strength over the last couple of series, has been their (bowling's) discipline, they have been so disciplined," said Langer while speaking to reporters on Tuesday.