Overlooked for India’s extensive England Test tour between June and August, Mumbai batter Shreyas Iyer marked his return to the national red-ball scheme of things as the BCCI named him as the skipper of the India A side, slated to face Australia A in two First-Class matches later this month.
The squad includes Nitish Kumar Reddy, who is recovering from a knee injury sustained in England. Wicket-keeper Dhruv Jurel will serve as vice-captain for the two four-day matches that will be played at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. KL Rahul and Mohammed Siraj, India’s leading stars in the recent Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, will return to action before the home Test season, starting with the second fixture from September 23. Prasidh Krishna, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, and N Jagadeesan have also been selected after their recent involvement in the England tour.
Iyer’s second wind?
The 30-year-old Iyer last featured in India’s Test setup during the home series against England in 2024 and has since missed four successive Test series. Following a poor start in the Duleep Trophy last season, Iyer rediscovered his long-format touch with 480 runs in five matches in the Ranji Trophy, including two centuries and his maiden First Class double century.
Despite his prolonged snub from the Test and T20I squads, Iyer has set the white-ball charts on fire, top-scoring for India during their victorious Champions Trophy in the UAE earlier this year and also dominating the IPL with his first 600-plus run season at a strike rate in excess of 175.
New names on the block
Among the fresh crop of recruits into the India A set-up are Vidarbha’s left-arm tweaker Harsh Dubey, Delhi batter Ayush Badoni and seamers Yash Thakur and Gurnoor Brar.
India A squad for Australia A – First Class matcjes
Squad: Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhimanyu Easwaran, N Jagadeesan (WK), Sai Sudharsan, Dhruv Jurel (VC & WK), Devdutt Padikkal, Harsh Dubey, Ayush Badoni, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Tanush Kotian, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Khaleel Ahmed, Manav Suthar, Yash Thakur, KL Rahul*, Mohammed Siraj*.
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The series kickstarts from September 16, 2025 and the second multi-day will commence on September 23, 2025. Both the matches will take place in Lucknow.
India A vs Australia A Multi-Day match schedule
| Australia A Tour of India | ||||
| S. No. | Date | Time | Match | Venue |
| 1 | Sep 16-19, 2025 | 9:30 | 1st Multi Day | Lucknow |
| 2 | Sep 23-26, 2025 | 9:30 | 2nd Multi Day | Lucknow |
