All-rounder Hardik Pandya was included in the India A squad for the upcoming three one-day games against Australia A that will be played on October 6, 9 and 11 in Puducherry. Along with this, Ruturaj Gaikwad was named the captain of the India A side for these games.

On the other hand, Devdutt Padikkal was named the captain of the India A squad for the two multi-day games that will also be played in Puducherry on September 22 and September 29.

Padikkal will have Sai Sudharsan as his vice-captain in India A for the multi-day games, and the red-ball squad also features Shaik Rasheed, Kumar Kushagra, Shams Mulani and Tushar Deshpande. Fast bowler V Vyshak has also been selected, subject to fitness clearance.

Padikkal will be Gaikwad’s deputy in the white-ball games, and the squad includes Rajat Patidar, Prabhsimran Singh and Naman Dhir. Hardik Pandya has also been included for the three one-day matches, subject to him clearing his fitness test.

This is the first time Hardik Pandya has been named in a squad for competitive matches, as he has been out of action since IPL 2026, when he suffered back spasms. Since then, he has been at the BCCI CoE, rehabbing and recovering from his injuries.

He also suffered a quadriceps strain during his rehabilitation, further delaying his return to the Indian team. This prevented him from returning to the India squad for the upcoming Afghanistan T20Is in Delhi.

India A Squads For Australia A Series

India A Multi-day squad:

Aman Mokhade, Ayush Pandey, Devdutt Padikkal [C], Sai Sudharsan [VC], Yash Rathod, Shaik Rasheed, Kumar Kushagra [WK], Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Tushar Deshpande, Anshul Kamboj, Praful Hinge, N Jagadeesan [WK], Nachiket Bhute, V Vyshak*

India A One-Day squad:

Priyansh Arya, Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal [VC], Ruturaj Gaikwad [C], Rajat Patidar, Kumar Kushagra [WK], Nishant Sindhu, Vipraj Nigam, Arshin Kulkarni, Arshad Khan, Naman Dhir, Hardik Pandya*, Prabhsimran Singh [WK], Gurjapneet Singh, Yash Thakur

Note: *Subject to fitness clearance

Schedule of the matches: