News has emanated that the BCCI’s senior men’s selection committee, headed by a former Indian pacer, Ajit Agarkar, has finally selected a 14-member India A squad that will take on the England Lions in the first unofficial Test starting May 30. This is while dealing with the schedule problems presented by the revised Indian Premier League (IPL) calendar, which collides with the India A fixtures.
According to a report, the selectors led by Ajit Agarkar have made up their mind to have two separate India A squads to play against England Lions for a series of two matches. The pool for the first match contains players whose IPL ended in the league stage, they are ready for national duty.
The opening batsman of India for the upcoming five-match Test series versus England, Yashasvi Jaiswal, is to play for the team India A. His IPL team, the Rajasthan Royals, did not qualify for the playoffs, meaning that he is available for the first four-day game. Another major addition is Ishan Kishan, the left-hand wicket-keeper batsman, who is back in the red-ball game after over a year. With Sunrisers Hyderabad outside the playoff contention, Kishan becomes available for pick. Young wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel, who had impressed during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy earlier this year, will be a competitor to fight for the place.
Jurel and Kishan are also expected to make it to the playing XI, and one of them could also come into the mix as a specialist batter. Someone who is making a comeback as well is an experienced all-rounder, Shardul Thakur, who will bring balance to the team. The opening batsman of Bengal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, has been on the selectors’ radar for quite some time and is currently not in the IPL also finds a place in the India A squad.
Some of the other possible names are all-rounder: Nitish Kumar Reddy, pacer: Anshul Kamboj, Karun Nair, and Mukesh Kumar. But if Delhi Capitals make it to the playoffs, the availability of players such as Mukesh can also be compromised.
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