The new order: Who will replace Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara in India's Test side?

India vs Sri Lanka: Even as India gear up to play without both Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara for the first time in nearly a decade, there is plenty of competition for the vacant middle-order spots.

For the first time in close to a decade, India will head into a Test match without both Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara when they take on Sri Lanka in Mohali from Friday. Rohit Sharma's first Test as India's full-time captain will see the Indian middle-order without the combined experience of 177 Test matches.

Despite chief selector Chetan Sharma stressing that the door will remain open for Pujara and Rahane to come back into the Test side, their axing from the Test side will throw opportunities at youngsters. The home series against Sri Lanka, who are not the same force that they were a decade back, presents an opportunity for head coach Rahul Dravid and Rohit to test out new faces in the middle-order which has been a cause of concern in the recent past.

India have picked a relatively young squad, hinting that they are looking ahead after dropping Pujara, Rahane, Wriddhiman Saha and Ishant Sharma. The likes of Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Priyank Panchal, KS Bharat are likely to get an extended run with the Test squad.

Pujara and Rahane have been pillars of the Indian middle-order, scoring more than 10,000 runs between them but the recent dip in form and lack of consistency did hour India in South Africa earlier this year.

in Rahul Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara, India had two technically sound batters for the No. 3 spot over the last 2 decades. Both of them were known for their relentless ability to ground down opposition attacks and make life easy for the star baiter at No. 4 - Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli.

IS VIHARI AN IDEAL REPLACEMENT FOR PUJARA?

If India wants to travel that route again, Hanuma Vihari seems to be a good choice for the No. 3 spot despite his inexperience at batting higher up the order in international cricket.