Gurkeerat Singh named skipper of the Board President's XI against Australia

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has confirmed that Punjab’s Gurkeerat Singh Mann will captain the Board President’s XI in the warm-up fixture against the touring Australian team on September 12. The practice match will be played in Chennai, which will also host the first of the five One-Day Internationals against the Kangaroos on September 17.

The 15-member squad chosen as the Board President’s XI consist of cricketers who have performed consistently at the domestic level, including a few of them who made their mark in the Indian Premier League (IPL) earlier this year. The team comprises the likes of IPL stars Rahul Tripathi, Mayank Agarwal, Nitish Rana and all-rounder Washington Sundar who had a fantastic TNPL season to follow up his IPL show.

Tripathi, one of the revelations of this year’s IPL has been included in the squad to present him some international exposure. He is expected to open the innings alongside Mayank Agarwal, who will aim to make his mark after failing to do so in the domestic T20 leagues.

The other noteworthy inclusions are 17-year-old youngster Washington Sundar who rose to prominence with his performances in the TNPL over the last two years, and the IPL where he represented the Rising Pune Supergiant in the tenth edition as a replacement for Ravi Ashwin. Sandeep Sharma, who was one of the best bowlers for the Kings XI Punjab has been named in the squad as well. Nitish Rana, who was also one of the standout players for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL has been included in the squad as well.

Sandeep Sharma, who was one of the best bowlers for the Kings XI Punjab has also been named. Nitish Rana, a standout player from the Mumbai Indians camp has been included in the squad as well.

The BCCI also confirmed the venues for the upcoming series, comprising three ODIs and as many T20Is against New Zealand, starting October 22 in Mumbai.

Fixtures:

The first ODI will be played in Chennai (September 17), second ODI will be played in Kolkata (September 21), followed by Indore (September 24), Bengaluru (September 28) and Nagpur (October 1).

The three T20 Internationals will be played in Ranchi (October 7), Guwahati (October 10) and Hyderabad (October 13).