Deodhar Trophy 2019-20, Match 1: India A v India B – Preview, prediction, likely XIs

After the Vijay Hazare Trophy now it’s time for Deodhar Trophy 2019-20. From a zonal format, this is now converted to a three-team tournament with top fringe players across the country forming the squads.

The upcoming 47th edition of Deodhar Trophy will be played between October 31 and November 4 and JSCA International Stadium in Ranchi will host all the matches. The first match of the tournament is scheduled to be played between India A and India B. The best part of both teams is that they consist of a number of youngsters.

India A led by Hanuma Vihari has a bunch of young talented batsmen to guide the team innings. Devdutt Padikkal will be expected to continue his good showing after a successful Vijay Hazare campaign. Easwaran, Ishan Kishan, Amandeep Khare have the ability to bring stability to the innings and Vishnu Vinod can accelerate the scoreboard. From the bowling unit, while Jaydev Unadkat and Siddarth Kaul can take the lead, the experience of Ravichandran Ashwin is a great asset. For Ashwin, these are the chances he should be working on to make comeback to the national side.

In the case of India B, all eyes will be on Yashasvi Jaiswal after what he did in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Baba Aparajith after his stroke-filled 66 off 84 in the Vijay Hazare Final will be eager to carry on with his good form. Ruturaj Gaekwad is an upcoming star of Indian cricket and he has proved his mettle a number of times. Shahbaz Nadeem will be charged up for another memorable outing at home, after his successful Test debut in the third Test against the Proteas. Speaking of experience, Parthiv Patel, the skipper has it all! Kedar Jadhav and Vijay Shankar have the tags of Team India which will definitely boost morale.

Key players

Devdutt Padikkal (India A)– The 19-year-old ended as the leading run-scorer in this year’s Vijay Hazare Trophy. He scored 609 runs at an average of 67.66 and scored five half-centuries and two centuries. One of the key members of Karnataka’s victorious 2019-20 campaign will look for capitalizing this chance as well. The in-form Devdutt Padikkal will be an integral part of India A batting lineup.

Yashasvi Jaiswal (India B)– With three centuries and a half-century in just six matches this 17-year-old ended as the fifth highest run-scorer of the tournament with 564 runs in six innings at fifth. The fact that he played only six games compared to the 12 by Aparajith, the fourth ranked batsman and was just 34 short of the latter reflects what kind of player he is.

Likely XIs

India A: Devdutt Padikkal, A R Easwaran, Ishan Kishan (WK), Hanuma Vihari (C), Vishnu Vinod, Amandeep Khare, Shahbaz Ahmed, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jaydev Unadkat, Sandeep Warrier, Siddarth Kaul

India B: Priyank Panchal, Ruturaj Gaekwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Baba Aparajith, Kedar Jadhav, Parthiv Patel (C & WK), Vijay Shankar, K Gowtham, Mohammed Siraj, Rush Kalaria, Shahbaz Nadeem

Prediction

India A to win the first fixture.