India A will play two unofficial Tests against Australia A starting September 16. Ahead of the upcoming home season, these games could help answer some questions for the Indian Test team.
The two matches, to be played at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow from September 16 to 19 and September 23 to 26, will serve as a precursor to the two home Test series against West Indies and South Africa that India have lined up for this year. Shreyas Iyer has been named skipper for the Australia A games, and will be leading a strong squad that also features some incumbent Test players.
Australia A have a host of capped players as well in their ranks, including the 2024/25 Border Gavaskar Trophy breakout star Sam Konstas, the opener whose place he took (Nathan McSweeney), and off-spinner Todd Murphy.
India A squad for Australia A unofficial Tests
Shreyas Iyer (c), Dhruv Jurel (vc), Abhimanyu Easwaran, B Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Ayush Badoni, KL Rahul*, N Jagadeesan, Harsh Dubey, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Khaleel Ahmed, Yash Thakur, Mohammed Siraj*.
*Only included for the second game
Coming off a drawn series in England, the Indian Test side still has several areas of uncertainty heading into the home Tests against West Indies in October. These ‘A’ matches could go a long way in addressing some of those.
Will Sai Sudharsan continue at No.3?
India have played musical chairs with the No.3 slot ever since the departure of Cheteshwar Pujara. For the England series, they handed a debut to Sai Sudharsan at three, but dropped him in favour of the returning Karun Nair after just one game. Following mediocre returns for Karun, India reverted to Sai Sudharsan, who batted at No.3 in the last two Tests.
The constant shuffling meant neither could get into much rhythm and put up big scores. While Nair seems to have gone out of favour again, as could potentially be inferred from his exclusion from the ‘A’ squad, Sai Sudharsan seems to be the batter India want to back at three.
However, with so many players waiting in the wings, the pecking order could change quickly. If Sai Sudharsan is able to hold his own and score big in the unofficial Tests against a strong Australian bowling attack, it would strengthen his candidature and could allow him just that extra bit of room to fail when the Tests start. On the contrary, a poor showing may exacerbate concerns around his first-class pedigree, a format where he averages 38.12 compared to the much higher averages of some of his competitors that include Padikkal, also in the India A squad.
Can Shreyas Iyer make a Test comeback?
Iyer last played a Test for India in early 2024. Now, with the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, and Rahul’s move back up to the top of the order, there are vacancies in the middle order which Iyer can fit nicely into.
Also read: Why the Australia A series is the perfect chance for Shreyas Iyer to turn his red-ball career around
Already an important member of the ODI XI, Iyer has had a golden period across formats lately, reinventing his T20 game and leading Punjab Kings to the final, while also scoring his first Ranji Trophy double hundred last year. This ‘A’ series will provide him with a golden opportunity to make a case for a Test comeback. It was in a home series against Australia A that he had announced himself at the big stage eight years back, scoring an unbeaten 202 off 210 balls. Anything close to as emphatic as that should ensure his return in whites, at least as a squad member if not in the XI straightaway.
Can Nitish Kumar Reddy be used as a second seamer at home?
Reddy was ruled out of the end stages of the England series due to an injury, but has been named in the squad to face Australia A. Having debuted in the Australia series late in 2024, Reddy is yet to play Test cricket at home. His ability to bowl seam lends immense balance to the XI overseas, but how much of a role he can play with the red ball in India remains to be seen.
Spin-friendly conditions at home have meant India have consistently employed three spinners and two seamers. But India's quicks aren't renowned for their batting abilities, meaning they can consider playing Reddy as the second seamer to add batting depth. However, for that to happen, he would have to not only prove his fitness but also impress big time with the ball in the two 'A' games. So far, he has picked up only eight wickets from seven Tests at an average of 37.62. Across all first-class cricket, his bowling numbers read 66 wickets at 29.15.
Who is the next spinner in line?
Washington Sundar had a breakthrough tour of England, cementing a spot for himself, possibly even for overseas Tests, and taking over the baton from R Ashwin. The troika of Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, and Sundar might not let India miss Ashwin a whole lot, but they would still have to identify who their backup spinners are going to be, now that the previous backups are taking centre-stage.
Axar Patel would probably be the fourth spinner, but the 'A' series against Australia would be a showdown between Kotian, Suthar, and Dubey to be the next-in-line. Kotian has been one of the most in-form all-rounders in Indian domestic cricket, consistently bailing teams out with the bat and running through oppositions with his off-spin, while Suthar and Dubey are left-arm orthodox spinners, both of whom also average above 25 with the bat. Whoever creates the most impact could inch a step closer to a Test call-up.
