Indian captain Virat Kohli, speaking at the pre-match press conference, confirmed that veteran opening batsman Gautam Gambhir will play in the third Test against New Zealand at the Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore.

Gambhir’s last Test appearance came against England in August 2014. The 34-year-old was called into the Indian squad as a replacement for the injured KL Rahul for the second Test at Kolkata, but had to sit out as Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan opened the innings.

With Dhawan also suffering an injury, Gambhir will finally return to the Test side.

When asked about Gambhir’s inclusion in the playing eleven, Kohli said: “That’s a natural change because of injury to Shikhar [Dhawan], natural because he is the third opener in the team.”

Gambhir has played in 56 Tests for India, scoring 4046 runs at an average of 42.58.

KOHLI PRAISES SHAMI

The Indian skipper was also full of praise for fast bowler Mohammed Shami who picked up six wickets in the second Test. Shami’s ability to extract reverse swing in New Zealand’s second innings delighted Indian fans.

Kohli mentioned that Shami has been working hard on his fitness and has the capability to pick up wickets on any surface.

“Shami has come on well. He’s worked very hard on his fitness as well. In the five-six overs he runs in, gets bit of momentum. He can take wickets on any wicket,” said Kohli.

“That’s the sort of skills he has. He is a strike bowler and whenever he comes on to bowl he makes something happen. As a captain he is a very important bowler for us.”