The ongoing Duleep Trophy 2025 is an excellent opportunity for India’s Test hopefuls to get the attention of the national selectors and earn a spot in the squad. Furthermore, with India’s home Test season also scheduled to begin from next month, all eyes will be on the Duleep Trophy semifinals with some of the top performers hoping for a potential selection.
Notably, India is slated to face West Indies for a two-Test series in October followed by two more Tests against South Africa in November.
Let’s take a look at three names who could be frontrunners to get a call-up by the Indian management.
The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain has bounced back from injury that he picked up during the IPL 2025 season in impeccable fashion. After slamming a century in the Buchi Babu tournament, he did an encore on Day 1 of the Duleep Trophy semis playing for the West Zone and against Central Zone.
He made a whopping 184 off 206 balls, which included 25 boundaries and a six. The knock will be extremely crucial to back Ruturaj’s case for a chance in the Indian Test team.
In the previous season of Ranji Trophy, Gaikwad also looked in good touch with 330 runs from 5 innings at an average of 66, including one century and two half-centuries. However, despite his 2632 runs from 38 first-class matches at an average of 41.97, Ruturaj has been really unfortunate not to don the Test whites yet. While Ruturaj has all the makings to break into the India squad, fitting him into the playing XI has been difficult with a cramped top-order.
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India has been on the lookout for Cheteshwar Pujara’s replacement at No.3 and have tried out a few options but no one has really stamped their authority yet. Now, with KL Rahul and Gill’s position fixed at the top and No.4, respectively, there’s a chance for Padikkal to secure the No.3 position.
Sai Sudharsan was recently given the opportunity with Devdutt out of contention due to injury during the England tour. However, Sai was average managing just 140 runs in 6 innings at 23.33. This could prompt the selectors to bring back Padikkal in the fray, especially given his current form.
He finished as the top scorer in the Maharaja Trophy T20 and followed it with a gritty 57 on Day 1 of the Duleep Trophy semis. Moreover, Devdutt has impressed in subcontinent conditions during his debut against England in early 2024 where he scored 65. Padikkal can also be slotted in the middle and if Pant is unavailble due to his toe injury, his backups are all right-handers which gives the left-handed Padikkal an edge.
Narayan Jagadeesan is another name who can be in line for a call-up especially after his heroics in the Duleep Trophy 2025 semis. Like Padikkal, Jagadeesan also represents the South Zone and registered a gritty 197.
Jagadeesan was recently added as a backup for the final Test against England after Rishabh Pant’s toe injury and with no fixed date for his return yet, Jagadeesan can be in reckoning for a spot in the Indian Test team once again. While he can be a cover for Dhruv Jurel, Jagadeesan’s numbers and experience can also make the management hand him an India debut. He a prolific batter in the longest format and his FC numbers of 3373 runs at an average of 47.50, which includes 10 centuries and 14 fifties only serve as a testament to his talent.
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