Pacer Harshit Rana, all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy selected for Australia tour
New Delhi, Oct 25: Delhi speedster Harshit Rana and Andhra seam bowling all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy have earned their maiden call-up in the 18-member Indian team led by Rohit Sharma for the upcoming five-Test series against Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
India will look to defend the trophy during the rubber that starts from November 22 at Perth.
However, pacer Mohammed Shami is not part of the squad while left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav has been advised long-term rehabilitation for his groin injury.
From the squad that was picked for the New Zealand series, Axar Patel has been dropped as off-spinner Washington Sundar, who has 11 wickets in his kitty so far in the ongoing Test in Pune, preferred over the Gujarat left-arm spinner.
Bengal man Abhimanyu Easwaran has entered the squad as reserve opener after four back-to-back hundreds in Duleep, Irani and Ranji Trophy matches.
The cover is because of the possibility of Rohit skipping one of the earlier Test matches due to personal reasons.
KL Rahul and Sarfaraz Khan make up for the middle-order with Rishabh Pant and Dhruv Jurel being the two wicket-keepers.
Prasidh Krishna, the lanky pacer who made his debut in South Africa last year, is back in the squad after a long injury lay-off.
However, the story of this Indian team selection is hulk-like Delhi speedster Harshit, who is only nine First-Class matches old and has taken 36 wickets.
But with a stellar IPL season under Gautam Gambhir at KKR, Rana has come quickly into the national reckoning and has been part of the squads in all formats, although he is yet to make his debut.
He bowls consistently in the 140-click range and has a good short ball apart from being able to nail his yorkers perfectly.
“Harshit Rana has been completely Gautam Gambhir's choice. He has been pushing his case for the longest time since the start of the Sri Lanka tour.
“He was also kept as a reserve bowler. Since he is younger and quicker than both Navdeep Saini and Mukesh Kumar, he has pipped them to the final squad,” a BCCI source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
As far as Nitish Reddy is concerned, he has one century and two five-wicket hauls in his 21 First-Class games and he was more of a forced choice as the seam bowling all-rounder cupboard is bare.
“Hardik Pandya has stopped playing red-ball cricket and Shivam Dube's (he is injured) bowling isn't up to the mark.
“Nitish is a work in progress but if India are to bring in balance, they need their fourth seamer to be an all-rounder. Hence Nitish is a desperate choice going by his IPL and Bangladesh series performance,” the source said.
It is understood that it won't be surprising if Washington gets ahead in pecking order in Australia for the second spinner's slot (first spinner would be Ravindra Jadeja) over Ravichandran Ashwin due to his superior batting skills which has already been tested in Australia during the last tour.
Among batsmen, Easwaran was rewarded for his four hundreds on the trot but he could also be a stonewaller like Cheteshwar Pujara if needed be during any part of the series.
Axar had to miss out because he would have been one spinner too many with Jadeja already in the side.
Mayank Yadav injured again
India's fastest bowler Mayank Yadav is injured again after an impressive international debut against Bangladesh as he missed out on a tour of South Africa for the four T20Is.
KKR batting all-rounder Ramandeep Singh and Karnataka speedster Vyshak Vijaykumar are the new entrants in the T20I set-up.
Dube (back injury) and Riyan Parag (shoulder injury) are back at the Center of Excellence for extensive rehabilitation.
India's squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar.
Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed.
India's squad for 4 T20Is against South Africa: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ramandeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Avesh Khan, Yash Dayal.
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Rajasthan CM Sharma invites Karnataka to partner in agritech transformation
Bengaluru (PTI): Asserting that Rajasthan is evolving and embracing progressive change, Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma on Sunday invited Karnataka and industry stakeholders present in Bengaluru to partner with the state in shaping a “new agricultural revolution.”
The CM was speaking at an investor meet organised in Bengaluru under the ‘Global Rajasthan Agritech Meet (GRAM)–2026’, aimed at positioning Rajasthan as a leading hub for agricultural innovation, agritech investment, and global partnerships.
“Rajasthan is moving toward building a strong agritech-driven economy by integrating its traditional agricultural strengths with modern technology. The state government is creating an investor-friendly environment,” Sharma said.
“Out of the Rs 35 lakh crore MoUs signed during the 2024 Rising Rajasthan Global Investment Summit, Rs 9 lakh crore worth of investments have already been grounded, and we welcome all stakeholders to be part of this transformative journey,” he added.
Emphasising the synergy between the two states, he said, “Rajasthan is growing, evolving and embracing progressive change, and together with Karnataka, we can further strengthen our farmers by equipping them with the latest technologies and building a future of shared prosperity.”
Highlighting the shared vision between the two states, he added, “Bengaluru and Rajasthan share a long-standing, cordial relationship built on innovation and progress.”
“As Rajasthan advances steadily toward becoming a Viksit Rajasthan, we invite Bengaluru and Karnataka to partner with us in shaping a new agricultural revolution,” he said.
The event was hosted by the Agriculture Department, Government of Rajasthan, in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and the Rajasthan Foundation.
The investor meet witnessed participation from key stakeholders across agriculture, agritech, industry, and investment sectors.
The CM said that through GRAM 2026, the government is committed to ushering in a new era of agricultural transformation by modernising farming practices, enhancing farmers’ incomes, and connecting them with cutting-edge technologies such as AI and agritech innovations, while expanding access to food processing and global markets.
“This landmark initiative will bring together thousands of farmers, experts and investors on a single, dynamic platform,” he said.
He further noted that the government is integrating key departments—including agriculture, electricity, cooperatives, animal husbandry and fisheries—to create a unified ecosystem for holistic farmer development.
“Our goal is to harness technology to drive sustainable growth and empower our farmers with the tools and opportunities they need to thrive,” he added.
Highlighting progress in the agriculture sector, Rajasthan Agriculture and Horticulture Minister Kirodi Lal Meena said the state government is strengthening the agritech ecosystem through policy support, infrastructure development and innovation, creating a conducive environment for investors and entrepreneurs.
During the event, a film on GRAM 2026 was showcased, highlighting opportunities in Rajasthan’s agriculture and agritech sectors, an official release said.
Extensive deliberations on agriculture, agritech, investment and partnership opportunities were held during the meet, with participants exploring collaborative pathways to strengthen the sector.
The main event, GRAM 2026, is scheduled to be held from May 23 to 25, 2026, in Jaipur, with expected participation from investors, industry leaders and policymakers from across India and abroad.
As part of the preparatory outreach, roadshows have already been conducted in Jaipur and New Delhi, with more planned across major cities to further expand the reach of the initiative, the release added.
