The five-match Australia A tour of India will kick off in Lucknow on Tuesday, with a couple of red-ball games, followed by three one-dayers, all in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Shreyas Iyer will lead the red-ball side and will look at these two games as an avenue for a Test comeback.
The five-match tour of India for Australia A will kick off with two red-ball matches in Lucknow. The ‘A’ tours provide an opportunity for the players on the fringe of either side to make their mark and throw their names in the mix for selection in the national side, while also being a dress rehearsal for the touring side to get a taste of the alien conditions, before a future tour. Australian chief selector, George Bailey, had acknowledged that apart from providing Ashes options, the India tour will be helpful for several of the players who might feature in the 2027 Test tour to the country.
India A will be led by Shreyas Iyer, who is back in the mix for the Indian Test team ahead of the four-Test home season. Iyer will get as many as four innings to prove himself in red-ball formats yet again and being considered one of the best players of spin, the IPL and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy-winning captain, will be keen to get back into the Test side with places up for grabs in the middle order. Similarly, the likes of Dhruv Jurel, Khaleel Ahmed, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian and Devdutt Padikkal, among others, who are not in the first XI, will also get a chance to stake their claim for the Test side.
When and where to watch the 1st unofficial IND A vs AUS A Test on TV and OTT in India?
The first unofficial Test between India A and Australia A is scheduled for a 9:30 AM IST start on Tuesday, September 16, at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow. The match, unfortunately, will not have a live telecast or streaming in India. Star Sports promoted the squad announcement and it seemed like the match would get a telecast, but there was no intimation about the streaming.
Squads
India A: Shreyas Iyer (c), Abhimanyu Easwaran, N Jagadeesan (wk), Sai Sudharsan, Dhruv Jurel (vc/wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Harsh Dubey, Ayush Badoni, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Tanush Kotian, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Khaleel Ahmed, Manav Suthar, Yash Thakur
Australia A: Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Jack Edwards, Aaron Hardie, Campbell Kellaway, Sam Konstas, Nathan McSweeney, Lance Morris, Todd Murphy, Fergus O’Neill, Oliver Peake, Josh Philippe, Corey Rocchiccioli, Liam Scott