What would an India A, India B, India C Test team look like?

The first XI, or India A as we’ll call it, is a full-strength Test team. India B comprises players who have played for the senior team recently, but narrowly miss out. India C is predominantly made up of fringe players who can be decent replacements in either the A or B teams in case of injury or loss of form.

What the India A team looks like

Rohit Sharma (vc), KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (capt), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammad Siraj, Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah

Rohit Sharma is a must-pick, but the identity of his partner is a three-way toss-up. Mayank Agarwal is phenomenal at home but has struggled away, whereas Shubman Gill and KL Rahul have both starred in overseas triumphs. However, Gill’s recent stocks have faltered somewhat, and it’s tough to ignore what Rahul did in England, so we’ve gone ahead with him.

Cheteshwar Pujara, despite his recent form, is still backed to come good, while Virat Kohli is an obvious choice as captain. Hanuma Vihari has done well overseas, and his average of just over 34 belies his potential. He has played just one match at home, and we believe he can be a success in India, with Ajinkya Rahane dropping out on account of his recent (and not-so-recent) indifferent form. Rishabh Pant is the first-choice keeper due to his batting, though Wriddhiman Saha gives him tough competition as far as keeping is concerned. The other picks are pretty straightforward, with Mohammad Siraj edging ahead of Ishant Sharma on current form and promise. Axar Patel is a tough miss, but we’ve tried to make a balanced attack, and the spinner, thus, starts in the B team.

What the India B team looks like

Mayank Agarwal (vc), Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Washington Sundar, Wriddhiman Saha, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Navdeep Saini

Mayank and Gill are obvious choices up top and the rest of the team pretty much picks itself, too. Shreyas Iyer had a dream debut and could be India’s mainstay in the middle order in years to come. Rahane, despite his iffy form, is selected to lead the team, something he did brilliantly in Australia at the start of the year. Saha could have been demoted to the C team if weren’t for a brilliant display of keeping in the recent series against New Zealand, to go with his unbeaten 61* at Kanpur.

Washington Sundar and Shardul Thakur are handy all-rounders, and played pivotal roles in India’s overseas Test wins this year, while Ishant partners Umesh Yadav and Navdeep Saini to form a pace attack that could challenge the best on their day.

What the India C team looks like

Prithvi Shaw (capt), Abhimanyu Easwaran, KS Bharat, Suryakumar Yadav, Priyank Panchal, Hardik Pandya, Jayant Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (vc), Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, T Natarajan

Prithvi Shaw had a memorable start to his career but a ban and a string of injuries have punctured his early career momentum. Abhimanyu Easwaran was with the senior team in England as was Suryakumar Yadav, while KS Bharat has been around for a while as well, and even subbed in for Saha in the Kanpur Test, putting on a fine display with the gloves. Priyank Panchal has played 100 FC games at an average of over 45 and scored a fine 92 against South Africa A, and we expect him to be under the selectors’ consideration.

Hardik Pandya’s back injury means he’s out of favour with the Test side, but he can play crucial knocks lower down the order. It’s unfortunate that Kuldeep Yadav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have been demoted to the C team, but recent form along with the emergence of youngsters pushes them down the pecking order. Prasidh Krishna can be a mean speedster while T Natarajan has already shown glimpses of what he’s capable of in international cricket.