India name squad as tour schedule remains unclear

25 Aug 2021 cricket.com.au

Cricket Australia continuing to negotiate with government authorities about the schedule for the upcoming matches between Australia and India

India have named injured pair Harmanpreet Kaur and Rajeshwari Gayakwad in a 22-player squad for their upcoming tour of Australia, with an announcement expected shortly regarding changes to the seven-match schedule.

The tour, details of which were announced in May, is currently scheduled to begin with an ODI at North Sydney Oval on September 19 before matches in Melbourne and Perth.

But the ongoing COVID-19 lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne as well as state border closures make that unlikely.

The tour will feature three ODIs, one Test and three T20Is, with the one-off Test at the WACA Ground further complicating matters given Western Australia's hardline stance on border controls.

Cricket Australia is currently speaking with government authorities about how, where and when the seven games can be played.

In a statement last week, CA said: "Due to the current COVID challenges, Cricket Australia will continue to monitor the situation right across the country and will consider whether or not it needs to make any decisions regarding rescheduling or moving matches in due course."

The Australian government currently requires all international arrivals to quarantine for 14 days, while Australian players from NSW and Victoria would seemingly also need to quarantine before the series if the matches are scheduled for another state.

Kaur, India’s T20 skipper, is recovering from a quad injury suffered in The Hundred in England, while left-arm spinner Gayakwad missed the recent tour of the UK due to a knee problem.

It’s yet to be seen just how much the quarantine restrictions will impact the pair’s ability to complete their rehabilitation programs and build-up match fitness before the series begins.

India have also called up three uncapped players for the tour; medium pacer Maghna Singh, left-handed batter Yastika Bhatia and allrounder Renuka Singh.

Speaking last week, Australia skipper Meg Lanning said her players were ready to move at a moment’s notice once the schedule is locked in.

"Things change very quickly these days," she said. "To be honest, every player within the squad is ready to move around at any point, we know how quickly things can change.

"At this stage, we're just planning on the schedule going ahead as it is and heading into a camp before that.

"But we also have got information that things could potentially change really quickly so we need to be ready for that.

"We're just going with the flow a fair bit and reacting to what's in front of us."

India Test and ODI squad: Mithali Raj (c), Harmanpreet Kaur (vc), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Punam Raut, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Yastika Bhatia, Taniya Bhatia (wk), Shikha Pandey, Jhulan Goswami, Meghna Singh, Pooja Vastrakar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Richa Ghosh, Ekta Bisht.

India T20I squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Yastika Bhatia, Shikha Pandey, Meghna Singh, Pooja Vastrakar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Richa Ghosh (wk), Harleen Deol, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav, Renuka Singh.

Commonwealth Bank Series v India

*Schedule is subject to change pending quarantine and border requirements

Australia squad: Meg Lanning (c), Rachael Haynes (vc), Darcie Brown, Maitlan Brown, Stella Campbell, Nicola Carey, Hannah Darlington, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Georgia Redmayne, Molly Strano, Annabel Sutherland, Tayla Vlaeminck, Georgia Wareham

Sep 19: First ODI, North Sydney Oval (D/N)

Sep 22: Second ODI, Junction Oval

Sep 24: Third ODI, Junction Oval

Sep 30 – Oct 3: Test match, WACA Ground (D/N)

Oct 7: First T20, North Sydney Oval

Oct 9: Second T20, North Sydney Oval

Oct 11: Third T20, North Sydney Oval