India’s Squad. (Source – BCCI)
With the 2024-25 edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy on the horizon, there are a lot of developments and speculations regarding the same which have been doing the rounds for a while now. Every event related to the Indian team, be it having occurred in the past or during the ongoing series against New Zealand has its correlation drawn to the five-match tour Down Under.
The latest update on the same comes from a report, which states that the selectors are likely to convene on October 28 to announce the squad, in other words, after the conclusion of the second Test between India and New Zealand in Pune. In particular, three points are set to be underlined in the meeting which is linked with player form, fitness, and team composition.
With India and Australia set to play a five-match Test series for the first time since the 1991-1992 season, the following points which are expected to be discussed in detail exude all the more vitality when it comes to the context of the series. With the World Test Championship final arriving in June 2025, the Indian team would not want to miss out on the opportunity of making it to Lord’s this time around, especially after leading the standings of the ongoing cycle as of now.
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Here are the three key points of discussion which the selectors are reported to hold
A significant topic of discussion would be whether or not to re-integrate Cheteshwar Pujara into the red-ball setup. The seasoned campaigner last played for India in last year’s WTC final against Australia and has been out of consideration ever since. However, it is important to note his vital contributions to the Willow during the 2018-19 and 2020-21 tours to Australia. His defensive grit which he showcased while registering his 18th first-class double-ton of late is something the selectors might factor in.
While Mohammed Shami was back on track with his recovery, a recent setback has put his spot in doubt. Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep are expected to lead the pace-bowling unit. The backup pacers, who might come in handy in case of an injury or due to managing the workload of some of the frontline pacers, have Avesh Khan and Yash Dayal enlisted in all probability.
Nitish Kumar Reddy has not been considered for the four-match T20I series against South Africa and has been instead included in the squad of India ‘A’ which will see them play a couple of fixtures against Australia ‘A’. This surely does emphasize that the BCCI is focused on grooming the youngster as a future seam-bowling all-rounder in the longest format of the game.