KL Rahul, Dhruv Jurel to play second India A vs Australia A unofficial test to prepare for BGT - Reports

KL Rahul and Dhruv Jurel were part of India’s test squad against New Zealand.

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 will start on November 22 in Perth. The 2024-25 series will mark the first instance of these two sides clashing in a five-match series since 1991/92.

Ahead of the important series Down Under, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to send two squad players, KL Rahul and Dhruv Jurel, to Australia a week before the rest of the squad.

The duo will join the India A team for the second four-day unofficial test against Australia A, scheduled to begin on November 7 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

The early arrival of these players will give them valuable match practice in Australian conditions before the start of the test series.

Rahul and Jurel both were recently part of India’s test squad against New Zealand.

Rahul was dropped from India’s XI after the first test against New Zealand in Bengaluru, where he scored 0 and 12. He made way for the return of Shubman Gill while India retained Sarfaraz Khan in the XI after his blockbuster century in the second innings in Bengaluru.

Jurel made his test debut earlier this year and was impressive against England. However, the right-hander did not feature in the five home tests as Rishabh Pant made a successful return to the test side.

Both these players will join the India A squad captained by Ruturaj Gaikwad. India A will be looking to bounce back after their seven-wicket loss in the first match of the ‘A’ series.

Preparing for the Australian challenge

The decision to send Rahul and Jurel came after the management decided to cancel their warm-up game against India A.

Captain Rohit Sharma cited the need for a more controlled match simulation for batters and bowlers. Sharma emphasized focusing on workload and practice over a traditional warm-up match. “We are travelling with a squad of 19 players and only three days were allotted to us. I don’t know how much workload we can get in those three days in terms of getting everyone prepared,” Sharma reasoned.

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy is crucial for the Indian team’s World Test Championship (WTC) hopes. After a shocking whitewash defeat against New Zealand, India now need to win the series against Australia by 4-0 to reach the WTC final without depending on other teams’ results.

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