Chennai Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, who was ignored by BCCI selectors on Saturday (September 28) for the upcoming three-match T20I series between India and Bangladesh, is in line to get picked in India’s Test squad for the upcoming five-match series against Australia. According to a report in the Times of India on Tuesday, Gaikwad, who is yet to play a Test match for India, will be picked in the Test team for the 2024-25 edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy as the third opening batter.
India will travel to Australia later this year to play five Tests, the first match of which is scheduled to take place in Perth from November 22 onwards. Adelaide will host the day-night Pink Ball Test, and the last three matches are set to be played in Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney.
As per the report, the Indian team management and selectors are looking at Gaikwad as the third opener, which is why he wasn’t picked for the Bangladesh T20Is. He is asked to keep playing red-ball matches, and that’s why he was also named as the Rest of India captain for the ongoing Irani Cup 2024 match against Mumbai in Lucknow.
“There has been a lot of hue and cry after Gaikwad wasn’t picked for the T20Is against Bangladesh despite regular T20I openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill being rested. The selectors and team management want him as the third opener in Australia. You need a third opener there, as injuries could take place during a long five-Test series. There aren’t too many good candidates for the third openers’ slot than Gaikwad. He needs to keep playing red-ball matches. This is why he has been asked to lead ROI in the Irani Cup,” a reliable source told TOI.
Gaikwad, who replaced Dhoni as CSK captain earlier this year, earned his maiden India Test call-up last year during the two-match series against the West Indies in July 2023, but he didn’t get a chance to play in any of the two matches.
Gaikwad, who last played for India in the T20I series against Zimbabwe in July 2024, has scored a total of 2273 runs in 32 first-class matches played so far. After the Irani Cup 2024, he will play for Maharashtra in the Ranji Trophy. The right-handed batter was appointed as Maharashtra captain for the premier domestic tournament, which is starting on October 11.
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