Pujara to lead India A for Caribbean tour

Mumbai, April 27 (IANS) Cheteshwar Pujara will lead the India A contingent on a tour of the Caribbean in June when the West Indies A will host them to three four-day matches, three one-day matches and two Twenty20s on the tour, which begins in Barbados June 2.

The All-India Senior Selection Committee, which met at the Cricket Centre here Friday, named Bengal keeper Wriddhiman Saha as Pujara's deputy on the tour.

The India A team constitutes a number of players who have represented India at the highest level.

Mumbai batsman Rohit Sharma will look to do well in the Caribbean and stake claim to a place in the Indian senior squad.

Rudra Pratap Singh, who was surprisingly recalled to the Indian Test squad in England where the Indians suffered a crushing 0-4 series defeat, has also been included in the 15-member squad.

Ajinkya Rahane, the current top run-getter in the fifth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), will be looking to prove a point to the Indian selectors.

Manoj Tiwary, Ashok Dinda, Rahul Sharma and R.P. Singh also feature in the squad named by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

India A squad:

Cheteshwar Pujara (captain), Wriddhiman Saha (vice-captain), Abhinav Mukund, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Manoj Tiwary, Rahul Sharma, Ashok Dinda, Jalaj Saxena, Rudra Pratap Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Robin Bisht, Akshay Darekar, Sami Ahmed.