India to add either Devdutt Padikkal or Sai Sudharsan to the main squad amid injury concerns ahead of 1st AUS vs IND 2024 Test - Reports
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is faced with a dilemma ahead of the first Border-Gavaskar Test in Perth. With Rohit Sharma already unavailable for the contest, the team have been rocked back with an injury concern after Shubman Gill fractured his finger while taking a catch during a match simulation against India 'A'.
Several other batters like Sarfaraz Khan, KL Rahul, and Virat Kohli were also hit during practice and match simulation while preparing for the testing conditions in store. Kohli had to undergo a scan, while KL Rahul had to walk off the field due to a blow to his elbow. With the extent of the injury still unknown, the management are considering transferring a member from India 'A' to the main squad.
According to a report by the Times of India, the BCCI is likely to retain one of Devdutt Padikkal or Sai Sudharsan before the India 'A' squad departs. Both left-handed batters have shown to be relatively solid enough to handle the Australian conditions in the short duration they have been here.
They were among the runs during the first unofficial Test against Australia 'A' in Mackay, and had shared a memorable partnership in the second innings. Sudharsan had recorded 103 runs while Padikkal scored 88 as the pair played a combined total of 399 deliveries.
"The final call will be with the coach, captain, and selectors but there is a strong possibility of management asking one specialist top-order batter to stay back for the series opener. Abhimanyu Easwaran is already there but one of Sai or Devdutt could well stay back too," said a source tracking developments told the Times of India.
Padikkal made a bleak start to the Ranji Trophy season before joining the India 'A' squad. The Karnataka batter had made his red-ball debut earlier this year during the fifth Test against England in Dharamsala.
Sudharsan, on the other hand, was off to a flier for Tamil Nadu, scoring a double ton against Delhi and a fifty against Saurashtra. He is yet to make his red-ball debut, but has featured in white-ball formats for India already.
India 'A' set to leave Australia on November 17
The BCCI will have to make a call soon as the India 'A' contingent is scheduled to leave Australia on Sunday, November 17 after the match simulation against the first-team comes to a close at the WACA in Perth.
The first Test of the Border-Gavaskar series is scheduled to begin from November 22 onwards at the Optus Stadium in Perth.