India hit Test mode with first warm-up game, look to sort combinations
Sydney: India will look to figure out their playing XI as the Test squad gets into the groove by taking on Australia 'A' in a three-day warm-up game at Drummoyne Oval from Sunday.
With India and Australia playing the second T20I on the same day, the visiting Test squad has been named India 'A' for the first of the two practice games scheduled ahead of the much-anticipated four-Test series.
The tour games will be a chance to sort out India's combinations both in the batting and bowling departments ahead of the opening Day-Night Test scheduled at Adelaide from December 17.
In batting, Mayank Agarwal is set to open the innings but there is a question mark over his partner with the choice being between Prithvi Shaw and Shubman Gill.
While Shaw was preferred in the New Zealand series, he struggled for consistency in the IPL. Gill, on the other hand, has scored 440 runs for Kolkata Knight Riders and also looked in good touch in the third ODI.
The other option is KL Rahul, who has been in rampaging form and also formed a formidable pair with Mayank for the Kings XI Punjab, but the last time he had played a Test was in September 2019.
In the wicketkeeper's slot, it will be Wriddhiman Saha versus Rishabh Pant.
For Saha, who had injured both his hamstrings during the IPL, it will be a test to show his fitness after getting back at the nets recently.
Pant has been India's number one choice in overseas Tests but he was dropped from the limited over series and will have to deliver the goods to seal the keeper's slot.
With skipper Virat Kohli going on paternity leave after the opening Test and the injured Rohit Sharma too uncertain, the onus will be on Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Hanuma Vihari to show the way.
Rahane, the man likely to lead India in the absence of Kohli, will look for a good outing. Pujara and Vihari too will be itching to go out in the middle having last played a competitive game in the pre-COVID-19 days.
In the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah, who was rested for the opening T20I, is expected to play the practice match as he looks to get into Test mode.
While Bumrah and Mohammed Shami will share the new ball in the Tests, the third pacer's spot will be up for grabs and Mohammed Siraj, who looked good in the IPL, will be keen to seal it.
Umesh Yadav, with an experience of 46 Tests, is also an option but he was erratic in the two games that he had played in the IPL.
Ravindra Jadeja has been ruled out of the next two T20I matches after suffering a concussion and it remains to be seen if he is fit for the Tests.
Ravichandran Ashwin's form will be key if Jadeja is unavailable and it will also open the door for Kuldeep Yadav, who was once proclaimed as India's number one overseas spinner by coach Ravi Shastri, following his exploits in Sydney last year.
For Australia, the spotlight will be on young William Pucovski as he looks to grab the opener's slot following an injury to David Warner, who has been ruled of at least the opening Test.
Pucovski's form in Sheffield Shield triggered a debate with many preferring him over Joe Burns but with Warner's injury, coach Justin Langer has made it clear the slot will go to one who performs well in the tour games.
While the first three-day game will be a red-ball affair, the second tour match, scheduled to begin from December 11, will be played with a pink ball.
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Only teachers can transform individuals into extraordinary citizens: CM Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that only teachers have the power to transform ordinary individuals into extraordinary citizens and urged them to focus on building a better society.
Inaugurating the State-level Educational Mega Conference and Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Karnataka State Primary School Teachers' Association at Tripura Vasini, Palace Grounds, he said teachers are the architects of the nation's future.
"At the time of Independence, the literacy rate was only 12 to 15 per cent. Today it has risen to 74 per cent. We must ask whether we are providing quality education that responds to social issues. This is not the fault of teachers. Because of the deeply rooted caste system, we have not been able to bring about the expected transformation in education," he said.
Emphasising the need for scientific and rational education, he said the Constitution envisages responsible development of individuals through such learning.
"Society is still bound by caste, superstition and regressive practices. Education must help eliminate these," he said, adding that inequality must end for all sections to join the mainstream.
"Only teachers can impart rational and scientific education. Only teachers have the power to transform ordinary people into extraordinary individuals," he said, recalling Mahatma Gandhi's view that development is possible only when intellect, compassion and skill come together.
He urged teachers to discharge their constitutional duties. "Accept ideas only after questioning and reasoning. Teach children to do the same," he said.
Assuring that teachers' demands would be addressed in phases, he said one lakh teachers were recruited when he was the finance minister in the past and that the Sixth and Seventh Pay Commissions had been implemented.
"We will discuss the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) in the Cabinet and arrive at a decision," he said.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, speaking at the conference, called upon teachers to prepare students not just to learn history but to create it.
"You are not just nurturing children; you are nurturing society itself. The joy you feel when your students rise to great heights cannot be matched," he said.
He urged teachers to ensure that the quality of education available in Bengaluru reaches every school.
"To realise dreams, children need hard work, commitment and discipline. The foundation laid at the primary level lasts a lifetime," he said.
Announcing measures to strengthen rural education, he said Rs 8,000 crore to Rs 10,000 crore of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds would be utilised to improve infrastructure in government schools in villages.
"Migration of children to cities for education must stop. Private schools have been advised to adopt government schools. Through this, we aim to fill 90,000 teaching posts," he said.
Noting that over one lakh teaching posts were vacant, he said approval had recently been given to fill 56,000 posts out of 2.5 lakh vacancies after detailed Cabinet discussions.
He also assured that land would be allotted for the teachers' association building subject to availability and sought teachers' cooperation in booth-level electoral work, stating that their role in ensuring fairness was crucial.
