AUS vs IND 2024-25: Devdutt Padikkal set to bat at No. 3, Harshit Rana set to debut in Perth

India will commence their Australia tour with the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 at the Optus Stadium in Perth from November 22. Ahead of the curtain raiser, India dealt a blow as Shubman Gill got his thumb fractured while practising in the nets at the WACA Ground. Moreover, India are also likely to be without the services of their captain, Rohit Sharma. 

While Rohit and his wife Ritika Sajdeh, welcomed their second child, the cricketer has reportedly sought the permission from Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to skip the Perth Test. On the hand, the availability of Gill too looks bleak as the injury has become a cause of concern. In order to treat the loss, the BCCI has asked Devdutt Padikkal, who touring Australia with India A for two four-day matches, to stay back in Australia with rest of the India A team returning to the subcontinent.

As per TOI, Padikkal will fill in for Gill in the playing XI against Australia in the first Test. Moreover, a source also revealed that Harshit Rana is poised to make his Test debut for India in the inaugural Test. It added that Rana was impressive with his bouncers in the intra-squad match simulation. For the unversed, given Rohit’s unavailability, Jasprit Bumrah is braced to lead the Indian side against Aussies in Perth.

"He [Padikkal] is likely to bat at the No 3 spot now. Harshit was very impressive in the match simulation at Perth, especially while bowling his bouncers. There's a good chance that he will make his India debut at Perth," a source said as quoted by TOI.

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It is worth noting that Padikkal appeared in four innings for India A against Australia A. The Karnataka batter scored 38, 88, 26 and 1 in the unofficial Tests. He has also been named in the Karnataka squad for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, which is slated to commence from November 23.