India A vs Australia, tour match preview: Visitors face stern Indian domestic player’s test

Australia will have to go through a stern test from the Indian domestic players when they play a three-day warm-up tie against India A, at the Brabounre Stadium in Mumbai

The biggest Test of the Indian international season all set to get underway from February 23, as the mighty visiting Australians would be in action at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune. However, they will have to go through a stern test from the Indian domestic players when they play a three-day warm-up tie against India A, at the Brabounre Stadium in Mumbai on Friday. Although it’s really ironic, that a full-strength Australian squad is in India preparing for the strong Test series, it would also be interesting to see how the other Australians team fairs Down Under, who are preparing to take on Sri Lanka in the first Twenty20 International (T20I) at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Friday. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: India vs Australia 1st Test at Pune

The three-day tour match will hold a great deal of significance for the visitors, who have been presented with some of the most talented young Indian cricketers. The batting is bolstered by Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Priyank Kirit Panchal — the highest run-scorer of the previous Ranji Trophy, Ankit Bawne — who was involved in that monumental 594-run stand in the Ranji Trophy, Ishan Kishan and a few more.

The bowling department is no less. Nadeem and Kuldeep can provide Australia some real scare if the visitors show any nerves. There is also the experience of Ashok Dinda. As many as 41 wickets in the Ranji Trophy for Mohammad Siraj make him one to watch out for, while Navdeep Saini’s 50 First-Class wickets in a mere 17 matches also puts him in that league.

Despite topping the charts with 56 wickets in the Ranji Trophy, Nadeem does not find himself in the Indian side. However, having missed out on the opportunity, Nadeem will be itching to take this game as a chance to push for his selection for the final two Tests, as India have announced their squad only for the first two contest, to be played at Pune and Bengaluru.

Hardik Pandya will captain the India A team, and will join the national team ahead of the first game. However, the chances of him earning a Test debut remain low for now, but Pandya will know what blanks he need to fill in to push for his case.

On the other hand, Australia have arrived in Mumbai on the bank of some rich practise and training they did at the ICC Cricket Academy in Dubai. The team landed in India’s financial capital on Monday night, and have got a couple of days to adjust to the local conditions before they lock horns with No. 1 team in ICC Test Rankings.

For the youngsters, there are many in the Australian squad. In this warm-up match, they are likely to be presented with the only opportunity to learn, adapt and understand. The aspect of learning will not hold as much importance as deliverability when they leave Mumbai, since the Test series will be all about either performing or perishing.

David Warner and Steven Smith have played enough cricket in India to teach the others what is playing here is all about. The two seniors will carry the greatest of responsibilities and Australia will want to get in their zone that they had during the final four Tests of their home summer, when their batting did as adequately as it was expected.

There are several youngsters who will learn the nuances of one of the toughest venues to tour. For Matthew Renshaw, Mitchell Swepson, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood and Jackson Bird, this is their first-ever trip to India. They will experience India as one of the most different venues to play cricket in; the sooner they learn and find their feet, the better.

The wicket at the Cricket Club of India, Brabourne Stadium, was flat and batsmen-friendly for the last two high-profile matches it hosted. MS Dhoni’s last match as India captain saw England trumping the hosts in a warm-up tie before the India-England ODIs. In the Irani Cup final, Wriddhiman Saha hammered a double-century and Cheteshwar Pujara scored a ton for the Rest of India side.

Australia will want to make most of this tour match before they run into the Indian giants.

Squads:

India A squad for tour match vs Australia in Mumbai: Hardik Pandya (c), Akhil Herwadkar, Priyank Kirit Panchal, Shreyas Iyer, Ankit Bawne, Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shahbaz Nadeem, Krishnappa Gowtham, Kuldeep Yadav, Navdeep Saini, Ashok Dinda, Mohammed Siraj, Rahul Singh, Baba Indrajith.

Australia squad for India tour 2016-17: Steven Smith (c), David Warner, Matt Renshaw, Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Wade (wk), Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Jackson Bird, Nathan Lyon, Stephen O’Keefe, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Swepson.

Time: 09.30 local | 04.00 GMT