Sydney, Jan 6 (IANS): Rohit Sharma will open the innings for India in the third Test against Australia that begins at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Thursday, stand-in skipper Ajinkya Rahane has confirmed.

"We all are really excited to have him (Rohit) back in the team, especially his experience at the highest level which matters a lot. Talking about his batting, he is batting really well in the nets. He had good 7-8 sessions, came to Melbourne, started practice straightaway when our Test match (Boxing Day Test) got over," said Rahane in the pre-match press conference on Wednesday.

"I think he is batting really well. The last couple of series he has been batting as an opener, so you will definitely see him batting at the top," he added.

Meanwhile, it was also confirmed that right-arm pacer Navdeep Saini will also make his Test debut at the SCG.

Rohit missed the first two Tests of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy as he was serving his quarantine period in Sydney. He had arrived late in Australia because of a hamstring injury he sustained in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The series is currently tied at 1-1 with Australia winning the first Test in Adelaide while India registering a win in the second in Melbourne.