India A To Face Australia A in Two First-Class Matches Before Border Gavaskar Trophy

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India A team will be Down Under later this year to face the Australian A side in two four-day first-class games before the highly-anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 between India and Australia.

The Australian Test cricket hopefuls will take on India's emerging stars from October 31- November 3 at Mackay and later at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) from November 7-10. Both the contests will be four-day affairs, as per cricket.com.au.

The Indian A team will later play a three-day intra-squad match against the senior Indian team in Perth from November 15-17. This will be the senior team's only practice match on the tour as they will come into the tour on the back of a 3-Test home series against New Zealand.

"Hosting those A matches at the upgraded Great Barrier Reef Arena and the MCG give these 'A' matches significant status and will provide great opportunities to players from both sides to put up their hand for selection," said Peter Roach, Cricket Australia, Head of Cricket Operations and Scheduling.

India A could feature players who have been on the fringes as well as some of the players who played in the home Test season, while Australia could see the likes of Marcus Harris, Matthew Renshaw and Cameron Bancroft among others feature.

India A vs Australia A Schedule 2024

• October 31-November 3: First Match at Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay (10 AM AEST/5:30 AM IST)
• November 7-November 10: Second Match at MCG, Melbourne (10:30 AM AEDT/4:30 AM IST)
• November 15-17: India v India A intra-squad match at Optus Stadium, Perth (Timing TBA)

The BGT series will start with the first Test at the Optus Stadium in Perth on November 22 and end at the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground with the fifth and final New Year's Test from January 3-7.

This upcoming series will also mark the first time the trophy will be contested over five Tests in more than 30 years. Australia has not won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy since 2017, having lost all past four series by 2-1, including two at home from 2018-19 and 2020-21.

Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 Schedule

• First Test: November 22-26: Perth Stadium, Perth (Day match)
• Second Test: December 6-10: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide (Day and Night match)
• Third Test: December 14-18: The Gabba, Brisbane (Day match)
• Fourth Test: December 26-30: MCG, Melbourne (Day match)
• Fifth Test: January 3-7: SCG, Sydney (Day match)