Shreyas Iyer To Lead India A For Multi-Day Matches Against Australia A, Rajat Patidar Left Out Of 15-Member Squad

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the 15-man squad for India A, which will take on Australia A for a two multi-day match series. Both the multi-day Tests will take place in Lucknow. The first unofficial Test will commence from September 16 onwards. Shreyas Iyer will lead the Indian troops and wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel will be his deputy.

The Punjab Kings (PBKS) skipper was left out from India’s squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025, in which he was expected to be a firm candidate. To add to that, Shreyas reportedly declined the captaincy for the West Zone in the Duleep Trophy 2025. As a result, the board went with Shardul Thakur as the skipper. Having said that, the 30-year-old will take this as an opportunity to showcase his skills in the multi-day format.

The two multi-day matches will be followed by three ODIs which will take place on September 30, October 3 and October 5 respectively. Kanpur will host the 50-over matches. The tour will act as a stepping stone for many players who are trying to make a mark.

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Shreyas Iyer To Marshal India A’s Troops

Abhimanyu Easwaran, who warmed the bench in the recently concluded Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, earns a spot in the squad. To add to that, Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batter Narayan Jagadeesan has also made his way into the 15-member squad. However, Jagadeesan might not get a chance in the XI due to Jurel, who is a firm starter considering his vice-captaincy.

The BCCI has also communicated that KL Rahul and Mohammed Siraj will join the squad for the second multi-day match. Two existing players from the squad will make way for Rahul and Siraj. All-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy will start in the XI as a strong contender. However, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) skipper Rajat Patidar was not named in the squad.

Youngsters like Sai Sudharsan, Ayush Badoni and Devdutt Padikkal will have a great chance to showcase their skills. Sudharsan has already featured at the highest level and has loopholes in his game that he will need to work on. And a series like this might just be the perfect time to get those out of the way. The 15-member squad also included pacers Prasidh Krishna and Khaleel Ahmed.

Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhimanyu Easwaran, N Jagadeesan (WK), Sai Sudharsan, Dhruv Jurel (VC & WK), Devdutt Padikkal, Harsh Dubey, Ayush Badoni, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Tanush Kotian, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Khaleel Ahmed, Manav Suthar, Yash Thakur.

Schedule For Australia A’s Tour of India A

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