India Squad Announcement for West Indies Tests, LIVE Updates: Ajit Agarkar to unveil 15 names today, but there's a catch

The series opener will be played in Ahmedabad, after which the action will move to Delhi from October 10. This will be India’s first Test series after the 2-2 draw in England for the first-ever Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. Shubman Gill will return at the helm after serving as deputy to Suryakumar Yadav in T20Is, and with another series against South Africa lined up in November, there's nothing like a good warm-up at home.

The upcoming home series is extremely important from India's point of view. Two reasons. First, it was around this time last year that India suffered one of their worst home Test record in recent memory – losing 0-3 to New Zealand at home. And second, to ensure India doesn't slip further in the World Test Championship standings. India is currently placed third, after Australia and Sri Lanka, despite playing more games than the two teams at Nos. 1 and 2. Hence, with the next four Tests being played on their home soil, a young India, under Gill, would be eyeing a 4-0 sweep to further solidify their position in the current WTC cycle.

The 15 players that will be shortlisted are likely to be on expected lines. Rishabh Pant has yet to recover from the toe fracture he sustained in England, meaning Dhruv Jurel will be India's primary wicketkeeper. Besides, the return of Ravindra Jadeja, who got a good break after England, promises to be a treat to the sore eyes. He is the only experienced player left from the recent lot that retired – Ravichandran Ashwin, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, and while he is already quite the handful, watching Jadeja operate will, as they say these days, 'hit right in the feels'.

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