India A Squad announced

The India A squad has been announced for the one-day tri-series against the A teams of South Africa and Australia. BCCI has also announced the squad for the four-day Tests against South Africa A that starts after the tri-series concludes.

Delhi batsman, Unmukt Chand, has been named the captain for the tri-series, and Ambati Rayudu will be leading India A in the tests. The 22-year-old, Chand had led India to the Under-19 World Cup title in 2012. He scored a well-paced 111 in the final. His temperament and self-belief helped India win the title in unfamiliar conditions. While on the other hand, Rayadu returning to international cricket after 11 years has been asked to lead the test side on the back of his strong performances in Zimbabwe.

All the one-day matches are to be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai between August 5 and August 14, and the two four-day Tests against South Africa A will start from August 18 at Wayanad stadium in Kerala.

23-year-old Karun Nair has been named the vice-captain of both sides since he was instrumental in Karnataka regaining the Ranji Trophy after 15 years, scoring three consecutive centuries including the two in the quarter final and semi final.

19-year-old Himachal Pradesh batsman and keeper, Ankush Bains and Saurashtra batsman, Sheldon Jackson were picked into the India A Test squad because of their performances in the 2014/15 Ranji Trophy season.

The tri-series will give an opportunity to youngsters like Mayank Agarwal, Sanju Samson, Rush Kalaria, Mandeep Singh and, Gurkeerat Singh Mann to show their talent on the international level, and to get into the good books of  the selectors.

Seam bowling all-rounder, Rishi Dhawan would also love to make it count and mark his place in the Indian team as the all-rounder India has been waiting for since the retirement of Kapil Dev.

This series will also help the likes of Abhimanyu Mithun and Ishwar Pandey to get back into reckoning.

The leg-spinner, Karn Sharma, who did not tour Zimbabwe due to a fractured finger, is a part of the side as well.

Robin Uthappa and Manoj Tiwari’s exclusion from the squad came as a shocker.

Squads:

India A squad for tri-series: Unmukt Chand (c), Mayank Agarwal, Manish Pandey, Karun Nair (vc), Kedar Jadhav, Sanju Samson, Akshar Patel, Parvez Rasool, Karn Sharma, Dhawal Kulkarni, Sandeep Sharma, Rush Kalaria, Mandeep Singh, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Rishi Dhawan.

India A squad for Tests: Ambati Rayudu (c), Karun Nair (vc), Abhinav Mukund, Ankush Bains, Shreyas Iyer, Baba Aparajith, Vijay Shankar, Jayant Yadav, Axar Patel, Karn Sharma, Abhimanyu Mithuin, Shradul Thakur, Ishwar Pandey, Sheldon Jackson, Jiwanjot Singh.