Had someone asked Rohit Sharma to head to the 4th Test in Melbourne with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy tied at 1-1, he would have taken that with both hands. For most of the 3rd Test, it seemed Australia would take a lead in the series but a great fightback by Jasprit Bumrah and Akash Deep, who helped India save the follow-on, and with a lot of help from rain, India managed to escape a defeat.

India still have a lot to worry heading into the 4th Test. The batting has been a total letdown in the series. Barring a 161 by Yashasvi Jaiswal and 100 by Kohli in the second innings of the 1st Test in Perth, and KL Rahul's 84 in the 3rd Test, Indian batters have flopped.

India need to find ways to score runs if they are to make a comeback into the series, but the form of players like Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Rishabh Pant is a big concern. It is time for India to test players who are waiting in the wings. Shubman Gill has looked totally off-colour and could be dropped from the XI for the 4th Test. India will have an option to play either Dhruv Jurel or Sarfaraz Khan, with Sarfaraz having a slightly better chance to play given that he is the specialist batter. Rohit Sharma could return as an opener and KL Rahul could be asked to bat at 3.

Meanwhile, the 4th Test will be played from December 26 so there is plenty of time for Jasprit Bumrah to get rest. Bumrah has taken a lot of load in the series and if there wasn't much gap, India might have been forced to rest him. However, he is all set to play in a must-win game in Melbourne. Mohammed Siraj, however, has blown hot and cold and India could play Harshit Rana at his expense.

Ravindra Jadeja batted beautifully in the 3rd Test but looked off-colour with the ball. With R Ashwin announcing retirement, Washington Sundar could be drafted back into the XI.

India's Likely XI for 4th Test: Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan/Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Nitish Reddy, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Akash Deep

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