MS Dhoni
Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been rested for the first Test against AustraliaPal Pillai/Sportzpics/BCCI

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been rested for the first Test against Australia but will resume his duties from the second Test.

Virat Kohli will lead the side as stand-in skipper for the opening Test starting December 4.

India will be touring Australia for four Tests, starting December 4, which will be preceded by two two-day practice games in November.

"Virat Kohli will lead India in the first Test, starting on 4 December 2014, in Brisbane. M.S. Dhoni has been rested for the first Test as a prophylactic measure to ensure optimum recovery. He will join the team from the second Test onwards, and will lead the team for the rest of the Test series," said Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Sanjay Patel.

BCCI's All-India Senior Selection Committee met on Monday to select the team.

Squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, K.L. Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Wriddhiman Saha, Naman Ojha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Karn Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Mohd. Shami, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron.

Dhawan, Jadeja Rested for Last Two Sri Lanka ODIs

Meanwhile, opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja have been rested for the last two One-Day Internationals (ODI) of the five-match India-Sri Lanka series.

Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma, Robin Uthappa, Karn Sharma, Vinay Kumar and Kedar Jadhav have been selected for the last two games which will be played in Kolkata (October 13) and Ranchi (October 16).

The Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) All-India Senior Selection Committee met on Monday to select the team.

Squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Robin Uthappa, Axar Patel, Karn Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Dhawal Kulkarni, Stuart Binny, Vinay Kumar, Kedar Jadhav.