BCCI throws Sehwag, Gambhir, Yuvraj and Zaheer India 'A' lifeline
The ODI and four-day games against West Indies A starting from September 25 will give several Indian discards to impress the national stars ahead of a long international season.
India A squads for the one-dayers and four-day games against touring West Indies A side have been announced. While Yuvraj Singh has been named the skipper for one-dayers, Cheteshwar Pujara will lead India 'A' in whites.
The series also marks the return for Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan for the second and third four-day matches. Yuvraj, Gambhir, Sehwag and Zaheer will be aiming to win back their Team India berths they had lost either due to form or fitness worries. Another interesting name in the four-day format is former India star Mohammed Kaif.
The three one-dayers and the lone T20, starting September 15, are scheduled to be played at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The venues for the four-day games, starting September 25, are at relatively unknown cricket grounds in Mysore, Shimoga and Hubli -- all in Karnataka.
Also returning for the one-day/T20 formats with another chance to prove themselves are Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan, Praveen Kumar and Rahul Sharma. While Irfan has faced injury concerns, Yusuf was dropped for a serious dip in form while Praveen and Rahul have faced disciplinary action in the recent past.
Unmukt Chand and Robin Uthappa have been retained for the one-dayers after their recent impressive performances against New Zealand A. Pacer Ishwar Pandey and J&K all-rounder Parvez Rasool get another chance to prove themselves in the 4-day format after the tough series against South Africa A.
With Team India scheduled to play back-to-back international series starting with a home ODI contest against the Australians in October, the series against West Indies A will be god-sent for many a fading star.
Schedule vs West Indies A:
One-dayers: September 15, 17 and 19
T20: September 21
4-day matches: September 25-28, October 2-5 and October 9-12
SQUADS
India A for 3 ODs/1T20 v WI A: Yuvraj Singh(C), Unmukt Chand, Robin Uthappa, Baba Aparajith, Kedar Jadhav, Naman Ojha (W), Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Jaydev Unadkat, Praveen Kumar, Sumit Narwal, Shahbaz Nadeem, Mandeep Singh, Rahul Sharma.
India A for 1st 4-day match: Cheteshwar Pujara (C), Jiwanjot Singh, KL Rahul, Manprit Juneja, Rajat Paliwal, Harshad Khadiwale, Parvez Rasool, Bhargav Bhatt, Ishwar Pandey, Shami Ahmed, Ashok Dinda, Rohit Motwani (W), Dhawal Kulkarni, Paras Dogra.
India A for 2nd/3rd 4-day games vs WI A: Cheteshwar Pujara(C), Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Sheldon Jackson, Abhishek Nayar, Paras Dogra, Uday Kaul (W), Parvez Rasool, Bhargav Bhatt, Dhawal Kulkarni, Zaheer Khan, Ishwar Pandey, Shami Ahmed, Mohammed Kaif.