Starting on October 30, Rishabh Pant will skipper India A in the two four-day matches against South Africa A in Bengaluru, marking his comeback to competitive cricket after suffering a foot injury.
The BCCI’s Centre of Excellence has given Pant the all-clear to resume playing after two phases of rehabilitation for the foot injury he sustained during the fourth England vs. India Test in Manchester in July. India of Pant He will not be playing for Delhi in the second round of the 2025–26 Ranji Trophy starting on October 25 as previously planned due to a selection.
While players like KL Rahul, Dhruv Jurel, Prasidh Krishna, and Mohammed Siraj will only play in the second four-day match, which begins on November 6, Pant and vice captain B Sai Sudharsan are expected to play in both games. They will all probably be included in India’s Test team for the South Africa series, which begins in Kolkata on November 14.
In order to maintain some continuity with the players who are playing for their respective state teams in the current Ranji Trophy season, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel had to adjust the squads.
Perhaps for this reason, among others, Rajat Patidar (captain of Madhya Pradesh), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Abhimanyu Easwaran (captain of Bengal), and Akash Deep are included in the squad for only one of the two games. For their domestic play, players like Saransh Jain, Harsh Dubey, Manav Suthar, and N Jagadeesan have received rewards.
At the first India vs. South Africa Test, Pant is probably going to make his Test comeback if the selectors are impressed by his form and level of fitness.
The Indian team for the first four-day game
Saransh Jain, Gurnoor Brar, Khaleel Ahmed, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Anshul Kamboj, Yash Thakur, Ayush Badoni, Saransh Jain, Gurnoor Brar, and Sai Sudharsan (vice-capt).
For the second four-day match, the Indian squad
KL Rahul, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Sai Sudharsan (vice-capt), KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Khaleel Ahmed, Gurnoor Brar, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep.
India
