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(REOPENS DEL31)

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Press Trust of India
Delhi opener Shikhar Dhawan has had a good season and has played a lot alongside Sehwag for his state and zonal side. The fact that Dhawan is a left-hander Could come into consideration as the team management might opt for a left-right combination.
Cheteshwar Pujara, Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli are automatic choices in the middle-order as they take the slots from No 3 to 5. This could well be tendulkar's last duel with the Aussies and he would like to cap it with another memorable show.
The second point of debate would be the slot in the middle-order. The choice for the team management will be between Ravindra Jadeja and Ajinkya Rahane.
 
Jadeja's all-round abilities provide him with a clear edge, having Rahane in the side would mean that India have a lot of depth in their batting to counter the pace and swing of the Aussie quicks.
Jadeja's inclusion will also be an indication as to whether India will be going with three specialist spinners in Harbhajan, Ashwin and Ojha or would drop one of the three spinners.
Last time against England in Nagpur, India went with four spinners in Jadeja, Ashwin, Piyush Chawla and Ojha and none of them could make significant impact on a dead Jamtha track.
It will be a tough choice for Dhoni whether to drop Harbhajan or Ashwin in case Jadeja plays. Since Ojha is a certainty, local boy Ashwin could be Dhoni's pick but the burly Tamil Nadu off-spinner's form has been very patchy during past six months.
Harbhajan might not have set the stage alight during this phase but he is one bowler whose success ratio has been pretty high against Australians and the opposition batsmen treat the 'Turbanator' with a lot of respect.
The 22-yard strip at the Chepauk has been a slow turner over the years but fast bowlers can expect to get reverse swing during the later stages.

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First Published: Feb 21 2013 | 1:00 PM IST

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