India will now lock horns with South Africa for three Tests and three ODIs, beginning December 26.
Rahane's comeback after 15 months was on predictable lines
Opener Kieran Powell's half century along with spinners Veerasammy Permaul and Nikita Miller's magical spell, tightened the West Indies A grip over India A on the third day of the first unofficial Test at Gangothri Glades Cricket Grounds in Mysore on Friday.
India's batting is a major concern with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli struggling for runs ahead of the tour of Australia.
Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has been included in the Test squad for the upcoming two-match series against Bangladesh.
Jasprit Bumrah was declared fit and was available for selection, but the selectors don't want to rush him back.
India will be expecting more runs from the middle order and discipline in the death overs as they look for a series sealing win against New Zealand in the second ODI in Raipur on Saturday.
Ishan Kishan had to sit out of the Sri Lanka series despite scoring the fastest double hundred in the history of ODIs against Bangladesh.
Promising all-rounder Parveez Rasool took five wickets, but West Indies 'A' hit back after being dismissed for 429 in the first unofficial Test at the Gangothri Glades Cricket Ground in Mysore, on Thursday. At stumps on the second day, India 'A' were in a spot of bother at 124 for three, with skipper Cheteshwar Pujara back in the pavilion.
'My goal initially was to play for the team (KKR) regularly and contribute to the wins. Hopefully, I will be able to perform for the Indian team. I want to thank selectors for having faith in me.'
As much as Ishan Kishan has done his bit, India will need Iyer, the proverbial slayer of spin bowling in the middle overs during the World Cup.
Jasprit Bumrah's return to action has been delayed further after the fast bowler was ruled of the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka as a 'precautionary measure', BCCI said on Monday.
Kohli's poor show, however, hasn't affected the team much as it is playing extremely well in the white-ball games.
While Ajinkya Rahane has been named vice-captain, pacer Navdeep Saini was recalled into the Test squad.
'Everyone in the contingent will be undergoing 14-day quarantine in India'
"You can't do anything about it," Rashid Khan conceded as he tried to make sense of Australia's refusal to play bilateral cricket with Afghanistan men's team, which he believes, achieves nothing beyond denying happiness to his people.
The return of old guards Rohit, Kohli and KL Rahul and also Shreyas Iyer will give India a huge boost as they eye the ODI series after clinching the T20Is against Sri Lanka.
Hardik Pandya's leadership skills and India's overall World Cup preparedness will be under focus
Rohit Sharma's request to the BCCI for a break from white-ball cricket in South Africa despite being offered T20 captaincy has been accepted, while Jasprit Bumrah has been named his deputy for the two Tests starting December 26.
A change in approach is required and for that a paradigm shift in the mindset during tricky run-chases unlike the first game at the Oval where the game was singlehandedly won by Jasprit Bumrah's six-wicket haul.
Ahead of Saturday's event, here's a lowdown of ready references for the auction.
'For us, the aim is to understand white-ball cricket, how to play, new guys are playing. 50 over is an extension of T20. Maybe you take less risk in ODIs as compared to T20 cricket but you have to take it.'
Manpreet Juneja's resolute knocks went in vain as India A succumbed to a humiliating 162-run defeat against the West Indies A in the first unofficial Test, giving away a 1-0 lead to the visitors in the three-match series in Mysore.
Senior Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik on Thursday earned a recall to the Indian team for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy after Manish Pandey was ruled out due to a side strain.
Both Avesh and Washington sustained their injuries while turning up for County XI in the first-class warm-up game against their own side. This was done after multiple players in the home team were ruled out either due to injury or because of COVID-19 isolation.
The unparalleled success of India's Test team on away tours over the past decade was largely because of its all weather pace attack but the same can't be said about the fast bowling resources available for the two-Test series against the West Indies.
Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji's Most Valuable Player Index after the South Africa ODIs presents a depressing view of the Indian players' showing in the first half of the ongoing tour
Siraj, who was not included in the T20I squad for the Caribbean tour, took seven wickets in the two Tests, including a five-for in the first innings on a flat Port-of-Spain court to spark a batting collapse for West Indies on the fourth morning.
Jasprit Bumrah was out of action for the past few months due to a back stress fracture, which forced him to miss the Asia Cup and the T20 World Cup.
Team India possess a much more balanced squad in the shortest format.
For the 'Bazball' inspired England, the win in Hyderabad has become a distant memory and a repeat of 2021 looks likely when India bounced back to win the four-Test series 3-1.
590 cricketers -- including 370 Indian players and 220 overseas players -- will go under the hammer during the two-day mega auction in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13.
Left chasing shadows in the first two games, a listless Indian team would most certainly tweak its bowling combination in order to avoid a second successive clean-sweep when it takes on Australia in the third and final ODI, in Canberra, on Wednesday.
India's captain Virat Kohli will have to think overtime about the balance of his squad, with a long tail, often bushy with runs, and just two openers -- one untested (Rohit Sharma) but very capable and another supremely talented (KL Rahul) but highly reluctant starter.
Pacer Navdeep Saini and uncapped Saurabh Kumar were named as replacements for injured Mohammad Shami and Ravindra Jadeja.
Bishop refused to compare the Indian unit to the fearsome West Indians of the past.
They are the team's leading performers, but Lokesh Rahul and Chris Gayle's batting in the Powerplay overs was one of the "massive problems", opined Kings XI Punjab skipper Ravichandran Ashwin after team failed to make it to the play-offs in Season 12 of the Indian Premier League.
Rohit Sharma will certainly leave a gaping hole at the top of the order, something that skipper Virat Kohli wouldn't have fancied at the onset of a gruelling two-month tour.
It is understood that Kuldeep, who had lost his mojo in the Kohli-Ravi Shastri era, has been called back as the current team management and selectors feel that he has the X-Factor to contribute to team's cause.
A series win will be an ideal confidence booster for India before the visitors hit Test match mode.
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