Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir, made a candid admission, saying the decision to pick Nitish Kumar Reddy for the upcoming Australia tour, came as a result of the team management looking beyond Shardul Thakur. For the unversed, Shardul had been a part of India's last Border-Gavaskar Trophy win in Australia. During India's pre-departure press conference, Gautam Gambhir was asked about the decision to pick Nitish Kumar Reddy, who has just played three T20Is for India.

He was also asked whether the young 22-year-old would be able to take the place of Mumbai seaming all-rounder aka Shardul Thakur. In his response, the former India opening batter was quite categorical in admitting that the management has moved on from the 33-year-old all-rounder.

"I think we've picked the best squad who can do the job for us. We all know how incredibly talented Nitish Reddy is and if given an option, he will deliver for us," Gambhir said.

"And it's also about moving forward. And I feel that the best set of players, what we have selected to do the job for the country," he added.

Nitish Kumar Reddy recently played the first and second unofficial Test for India A against Australia A. In the two-matches, he returned with a total of 71 runs and 1 wicket.

Speaking of Shardul Thakur, the all-rounder had made his Test debut in 2018, but injuries have often pegged him back. It was during the Gabba Test in 2021 that Shardul became a household name as he made 67 in first innings and took 7 wickets in the entire match.

He also scored 57 runs off just 36 balls in the Oval Test against England in 2021. In his career, another highlight came in 2022 when he took a five-wicket haul at the Wanderers against South Africa.

Gambhir backs Harshit Rana

During the press conference, Gautam Gambhir was also asked about his decision to not send pacer Harshit Rana to play the India A match against Australia A. It is important to mention that Harshit is the part of main India squad for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

"He (Harshit Rana) has played one first-class match against Assam. So we thought there was no point sending him to Australia to play another first-class match,” Gambhir said.

The five-match series between India and Australia is slated to begin on November 22 in Perth. The remaining four Tests will be played in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.

India squad for BGT: 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.

Kuldeep Yadav was unavailable for selection for the tour as he has been referred to the BCCI Centre of Excellence for long term resolution of his chronic left groin issue.

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