Easwaran has been in splendid form, scoring 4 hundreds in his last 6 first-class matches. Gaikwad hasn’t been able to match his rival, but he himself has 1 hundred and 3 fifties in his last 7 red-ball matches.
Both Ruturaj Gaikwad and Abhimanyu Easwaran had a golden opportunity. The two openers for India A are currently locked in a battle. With Indian Test captain Rohit Sharma expected to be unavailable for the India vs Australia 1st Test, one of them is going to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Rohit has informed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that he might not be available for one of the first two Tests. Although the personal reason behind his absence hasn’t been confirmed yet, reports have suggested that he’s expecting his second child.
Gaikwad or Easwaran: Who’s ahead?
In his absence, one of Gaikwad or Easwaran would fill his shoes. A glance at the squad would tell you that Easwaran is ahead. The opener from Bengal has been included in India’s squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25. However, if Rohit is indeed out of one or both opening Tests, Gaikwad can come in as his replacement for those games.
Failures for both in India A vs Australia A match
It’s certain both had that in their minds when they took the field for the India A vs Australia A match in Mackay. Combined, they scored 24 runs. In the first innings, Jordan Buckingham got them both. Ruturaj got caught down the leg for a golden duck, and then Easwaran perished owing to a good delivery but an even better catch by Josh Philippe.
However, it wasn’t just them who failed. India A scored just 107. After a good performance by the bowlers, Gaikwad and Easwaran got the chance again. But they failed yet again. Fergus O’Neill got Gaikwad in the slips as the opener tried to poke at one on the 6th stump. But Buckingham continued to have Easwaran’s number. Unlike the first innings, this time, he ran him out.
Need magic at MCG
Irrespective of the mode of dismissal, at the end of the day, the final result matters. Luckily, despite these failures, both Gaikwad and Easwaran still have a chance to outdo one another. India A go to Melbourne next, the venue for the 4th Test. It’ll be the final chance for both to make their cases. Whoever shines there might get to make their Test debut in either Perth or Adelaide.
India’s squad for the BGT 2024-25
Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar
Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed
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