Hardik Pandya returns from injury as India A name their Australia A squads

Ruturaj Gaikwad takes the one-day side and Devdutt Padikkal the red-ball one, with Pandya picked subject to a fitness clearance after months of rehabilitation

India A will be led by Devdtt Padikkal in the two first-class matches against Australia A and by Ruturaj Gaikwad in the three one-dayers, with the selectors splitting the captaincy across the two formats.

The headline name is Hardik Pandya, included in the one-day squad after an extended rehabilitation from a quadriceps injury at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. His selection is subject to fitness clearance.

All five matches are in Puducherry, running from 22 September to 11 October.

The split captaincy is itself notable. India A has often travelled under a single leader, and handing the formats to different players lets the selectors look at two candidates in one window rather than one.

The red-ball squad

Padikkal captains with Sai Sudharsan as his deputy, in a group of Aman Mokhade, Ayush Pandey, Yash Rathod, Shaik Rasheed, Kumar Kushagra, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Tushar Deshpande, Anshul Kamboj, Praful Hinge, N Jagadeesan, Nachiket Bhute and V Vyshak.

Two wicketkeepers travel in Kushagra and Jagadeesan, and the spin department of Mulani and Kotian reflects what two first-class matches in Puducherry are likely to ask for.

Vyshak, like Pandya, must pass a fitness check before the opening match on 22 September.

Tushar Deshpande and Anshul Kamboj lead the seam attack, both of whom have carried heavy first-class workloads in recent seasons without breaking into the senior side.

The one-day squad

Gaikwad leads with Padikkal as vice-captain: Priyansh Arya, Sai Sudharsan, Rajat Patidar, Kumar Kushagra, Nishant Sindhu, Vipraj Nigam, Arshin Kulkarni, Arshad Khan, Naman Dhir, Hardik Pandya, Prabhsimran Singh, Gurjapneet Singh and Yash Thakur complete it.

Padikkal and Sudharsan appear in both squads, which is the clearest signal in the announcement about who the selectors are tracking across formats.

Rajat Patidar and Prabhsimran Singh give the batting order two players with recent Indian Premier League form, and Arshin Kulkarni is the youngest name in either squad.

What Pandya's inclusion means

Pandya has not played for months, and an India A one-day series is the conventional route back for a senior player who needs match time rather than assessment.

At 32, and with the fifty-over side building towards the 2027 World Cup, the question is less whether he is good enough than whether the body holds. Three one-dayers in three weeks is a measured way to find out.

The fitness clause is doing real work in this announcement. He is named, not confirmed.

An A tour at home is also the least risky setting for it. There is no travel to absorb, the conditions are familiar, and a withdrawal costs nobody a Test place.

Padikkal's week

Padikkal received the red-ball captaincy on a day he spent batting in the Duleep Trophy final at Chepauk, where South Zone are following a first-innings deficit of 372 and face a final day trying to save the match.

Leading India A in first-class cricket is a meaningful step for a batter who has moved in and out of the senior squad without ever quite settling in it.

Australia A tour India from 22 September to 11 October for two first-class matches and three List A games, all played in Puducherry.

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