India has announced its 18-man squad for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Test series against Australia, with the first Test set to begin on November 22 in Perth. Abhimanyu Easwaran, Harshit Rana, and Nitish Reddy have earned their spots, while Kuldeep Yadav misses out due to a chronic groin issue and will undergo treatment at the BCCI Centre of Excellence.
Bengal opener Abhimanyu Easwaran has been rewarded for his consistent domestic form, scoring centuries across the Duleep Trophy, Ranji Trophy, and Irani Cup. He joins Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal as the third-choice opener.
India’s fast bowling lineup remains strong, despite Mohammed Shami’s absence as he continues to recover. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj lead the pace attack, with Akash Deep and Prasidh Krishna joining after their impressive performances in recent series. Harshit Rana also makes the squad, capping off a successful year that included an IPL title win. Nitish Reddy, a medium-pace all-rounder from Andhra, follows a similar path to Rana with an impressive IPL and a T20I debut.
Washington Sundar, who made his mark during India’s last tour to Australia, has also been included, while Axar Patel has been left out. India has named Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, and Khaleel Ahmed as reserve pacers.
The Border-Gavaskar series consists of five Tests, starting in Perth, with matches in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney.
India squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar
Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed
Tour Schedule:
| Tests | Venue | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Perth Stadium, Perth | November 22-26 |
| 2nd (D/N) | Adelaide Oval | December 6-10 |
| 3rd | The Gabba, Brisbane | December 14-18 |
| 4th | MCG, Melbourne | December 26-30 |
| 5th | SCG, Sydney | January 3-7 |