In the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy, there are five new faces that will be seen in the Indian squad for the Australian tour.
Abhimanyu, Washington, Harshit, Nitish, and Prasidh all staked claims for selection with their performance
India’s 18-member squad going to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy does not have experienced bowlers like Mohammed Shami and Kuldeep Yadav, while young bowlers like Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna and Washington Sundar have been trusted.
There is also a name like Abhimanyu Easwaran in the opening batting, who has been associated with the Indian Test team a few times, but his debut is yet to happen. At the same time, among the all-rounders, this time trust has been shown in a name like Nitish Reddy, who made his T20I debut for India earlier this month, he is also going to get the opportunity to be included in the Border Gavaskar Trophy.
Five new players in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Abhimanyu Easwaran
This 29-year-old Bengal opener is considered a run machine in domestic cricket and he has also made a place in the Indian Test team a few times. He can also be seen opening for India in the absence of Rohit Sharma in Perth. He has already reached Australia to play for India A, where he will also play his 100th first-class match.
Abhimanyu has more than 7600 first-class runs at an average of around 50 and with his recent performance, he has overtaken names like Rituraj Gaikwad, B Sai Sudarshan, and Devdutt Padikkal. Abhimanyu has scored centuries in all his last four first-class matches, including centuries in the Duleep Trophy, Irani Cup, and Ranji Trophy. India will hope that his form continues for India A as well and in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy if given a chance.
Washington Sundar
Washington Sundar, who is returning to the Test team after almost three years, proved his selection right by taking 11 wickets in the Pune Test. However, it is unlikely that he will be selected above Ravindra Jadeja or R Ashwin in Australia. But if none of them are available, Washington can come straight into the team due to his useful batting.
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Before the Pune Test, he scored 152 runs coming at number three for Tamil Nadu in the Ranji match against Delhi. He also went on the 2020-21 Australia tour, where he played a crucial innings of 62 runs at the Gabba. Apart from this, he has also scored a half-century against England at home. His height gives him extra bounce, which can prove to be helpful on Australian pitches.
Nitish Kumar Reddy
Nitish Reddy, a key player for Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2024, made his international debut during the T20I series against Bangladesh earlier this month. Reddy, just 21 years old, scored 74 runs in 34 balls during the second T20I while also taking two wickets while opening the bowling.
Although his highest score in five innings of the Duleep Trophy was just 40, while he could take only two wickets in 48 overs. But he has the ability to swing the ball both ways at a speed of 130-135. He also bowls with the new ball for Andhra and has taken the highest 25 wickets for them last season at an average of 18.76, including a maiden wicket against Mumbai. He would also like to play some matches for India A before joining the main team.
Prasidh Krishna
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Prasidh Krishna is also returning from injury and has played four first-class matches during this domestic season. He got only two wickets in two Test matches against South Africa last year, but due to his height, the selectors and team management want to take him to Australia. He has the ability to extract more bounce on the bouncy wickets of Australia. Prasiddh would also like to play some India A matches before the series starts.
Harshit Rana
Harshit Rana is the least experienced player in the Indian team going to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The tall Rana, who has played just nine first-class matches for Delhi, impressed with his performances for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in this year’s IPL, taking 19 wickets. Rana also took four wickets twice while opening the bowling during Duleep Trophy matches at the start of the season.
Harshit Rana, who took 21 wickets in five Ranji Trophy matches for Delhi last season, can also bat when needed and has a first-class century to his name. He has also toured South Africa for India A. He was also included in India’s T20 squads against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe but is yet to make his international debut.
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