NEWS
Follow UsMumbai all-rounder Tanush Kotian has been added to the Indian squad for the remainder of the Test series against Australia, according to a report on Sportstar. He will link up with the Indian team in Melbourne ahead of the Boxing Day Test, starting December 26.
Kotian, an off-spinner and a right-handed batter, is seen as a like-for-like replacement for Ravichandran Ashwin, who retired after the Brisbane Test. He will leave for Australia on December 24 (Tuesday). While Ravindra Jadeja is expected to retain his spot for the Melbourne Test, Kotian could come into the picture for the final Test in Sydney, where spin is expected to play a part.
However, India have the services of Washington Sundar, who played the first Test in Perth, in the squad and is most likely to occupy the second spinner's spot, which could mean Kotian does not play a single Test.
The 26-year-old was with the Mumbai team for the Vijay Hazare Trophy in Ahmedabad. He was part of the India A squad ahead of the Test series against Australia.
In his 33 first-class matches, Kotian has scored 2,523 runs at 41.21, which includes two tons and 13 fifties. He has also picked up 101 wickets at 25.70 and has as many as three five-wicket hauls.
In fact, Kotian's last first-class game came at the MCG against Australia A, where he picked up just one wicket but scored 44 in the second innings, batting at eight to give his side a fighting chance. He played a crucial role in Mumbai's successful Ranji Trophy 2023-24 campaign, having scored 502 runs at 41.83 and with the ball, he picked up 29 scalps at 16.96.
In the Irani Cup that followed, Kotian scored 64 in the first innings before picking up three wickets against Rest of India (ROI). But he really took off in the second innings, scoring a mature 114* and put on an unbeaten 158-run stand with Mohit Avasthi for the ninth wicket to help Mumbai clinch the title.
