Mitchell Starc, who currently is the leading wicket-taker in the ongoing Ashes 2017/18 series with 19 scalps to his name, has been replaced with Jackson Bird.

Going by what is in store for both sides at Dharamsala, Australia might opt to go in with an extra seamer instead of a spinner in a pitch that is supposed to assist the faster bowlers. The Pune Test hero, in all likelihood, will be dropped from the playing XI and be replaced by pacer Jackson Bird.

When tea was called early due to rain, the visitors were 142 for four with opener Azhar Ali on 66 and first Test centurion Asad Shafiq on four, and that proved to be the stumps score as well.

At the close, Pakistan were hanging on at 97/8 and trailing by 332 runs with Sarfraz Ahmed on 31 and Mohammad Amir not out on eight.

While Akhil Herwadkar stood out with his unbeaten knock of 82, pace bowler Shardul Thakur picked up a five-wicket haul for India A

Australia closed in on

Jackson Bird, who last played a Test for Australia during the 2013 Ashes series, comes in for the injured James Pattinson for the first Test against New Zealand on Friday.

Australia have an infamous statistic of talented but injured fast bowlers. Mitchell Starc is another addition to the list.

Jackson Bird, who has played three Tests, was not selected for the fifth and final match of the Ashes series at The Oval in south London, with his place taken by Mitchell Starc in a match that started on Wednesday.

The 23-year-old Faulkner replaces out-of-form batsman Usman Khawaja, who averaged just 19 in three successive Tests.