The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has set the return date for Rishabh Pant. The India Test vice-captain will mark his return to competitive cricket for the first time since the England tour in July. That will rule him out of the Ranji Trophy. Pant was sidelined for three months with a broken foot, forcing him to miss the Asia Cup, Test series against West Indies and the Australia tour. Ahead of the IND vs SA series, starting on November 14, Pant will lead the India A squad against South Africa A in two four-day matches, starting on October 30. However, Mohammed Shami continues to be ignored by the BCCI selection committee.
South Africa Test and ODI captain Temba Bavuma will also feature in the 2nd four-day match ahead of the IND vs SA Test series. Bavuma missed out on the Pakistan tour as he was sidelined with an injury.
India will also play three One-Day matches against South Africa A, starting November 13. Whether Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma feature in those is the big question. The BCCI hasn’t announced the squad for those three One-Day matches yet. The IND vs SA ODIs begin on Nov 30, giving the two superstars ample time to play those three India A games.
India A squad for 1st four-day match
The 1st four-day match will have young players from India’s Test squad, including Sai Sudharsan and Devdutt Padikkal. It is also an opportunity for Rajat Patidar to impress as he is eying a Test comeback on the back of scintillating red-ball form. Delhi will be without their captain, Ayush Badoni, as he is also named in the squad for the 1st match. However, one surprising omission is of Sarfaraz Khan, who continues to be absent since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy earlier this year.
Rishabh Pant (C) (WK), Ayush Mhatre, N Jagdeesan (WK), Sai Sudharsan (VC), Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Anshul Kamboj, Yash Thakur, Ayush Badoni, Saransh Jain.
India A squad for 2nd four-day match
While Rishabh Pant will continue to lead the squad in the 2nd match, he will have India’s Test regulars. KL Rahul, Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj, who are not in India’s T20I squad for the Australia tour, will play the 2nd match against South Africa A.
Rishabh Pant (C) (WK), KL Rahul, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Sai Sudharsan (VC), Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Khaleel Ahmed, Gurnoor Brar, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep.
No Mohammed Shami
However, it seems that the selectors have moved on from Mohammed Shami, at least from Test cricket. Despite proving fitness, Mohd Shami is not in the India A squad for South Africa A series.
Shami recently made headlines when he countered BCCI chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar’s, claims about his fitness. Agarkar said he was not fit ahead of Asia Cup. He was also not considered for the ODIs against Australia. Since then, Shami has played Duleep Trophy and a Ranji Trophy match for Bengal. He picked up 7 wickets for Bengal against Uttarakhand. However, his absence in the India A series raises the question of whether selectors have moved on from Shami.
“Selection is not in my hands. If there is a fitness issue, I shouldn’t be here playing for Bengal. I think I do not need to speak on this and create a controversy. If I can play four-dayers (Ranji Trophy), I can also play 50-overs cricket,” Shami told PTI after his stellar show against Uttarakhand.
IND A vs SA A Schedule
Both matches will be played at BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru with little to no chance of live-streaming or live broadcast. The One-Day matches will begin on November 13 in Rajkot. Depending on Rohit and Kohli’s availability for those matches, there could be live streaming.
| Match | Date (From) | Date (To) | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IND A vs SA A 1st Unofficial Test | Oct 30, 2025 | Nov 2, 2025 | 09:30 | BCCI COE |
| IND A vs SA A 2nd Unofficial Test | Nov 6, 2025 | Nov 9, 2025 | 09:30 | BCCI COE |
| IND A vs SA A 1st One-Day | Nov 13, 2025 | Nov 13, 2025 | 09:30 | Rajkot |
| IND A vs SA A 2nd One-Day | Nov 16, 2025 | Nov 16, 2025 | 09:30 | Rajkot |
| IND A vs SA A 3rd One-Day | Nov 19, 2025 | Nov 19, 2025 | 09:30 | Rajkot |
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