File photo of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane© AFP
Cheteshwar Pujara was a walking nightmare for Pat Cummins and company on the last two tours of Australia and the seasoned campaigner could be a surprise pick in India's jumbo squad for the upcoming five-Test series Down Under. The selectors are expected to announce the squad on October 28. Pujara could get the selectors' nod if Ajit Agarkar and his team decide to fall back on his experience. The 36-year-old was the leading run-getter in the 2018-19 series with 521 runs off 1258 balls and was once again the backbone of Indian batting three years later when he accumulated 271 runs off 928 balls.
Across the two teams, the 103-Test veteran by far faced the most number of balls to wear out the opposition attack comprising Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc. Pujara has not played for India since the World Test Championship final in June last year.
His appetite for big runs hasn't satiated yet as he scored 234 off 383 balls against Chattisgarh in the last Ranji Trophy round.
Reddy being prepared as a seamer all-rounder
Despite his good performances in the Bangladesh series, Nitish Reddy won't be a part of the T20s in South Africa after being picked in the India A squad for the shadow tour of Australia.
While Shardul Thakur's experience can come in handy, he hasn't done anything worth taking note of since his comeback from injury. Thakur, however, did make an impact on the last tour of Australia where a second string India were able to defeat the mighty hosts at the Gabba and the win the series for the second time in a row.
One among Mayank, Harshit could be picked
Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep select themselves in the Test squad but the likes of Avesh Khan and Yash Dayal are also in the mix. Mohammed Shami declared himself pain free on Monday but he might not be fully fit for the initial part of the series beginning in Perth on November 22.