Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra believes Rishabh Pant could have been added to India A squad ahead of the five-match Test series against England. Chopra noted that Pant hasn’t been in the best of forms in the ongoing IPL 2025 and it would be crucial for him to get runs ahead of the England series.

Pant has managed 128 runs in 11 matches of the tournament at an average of 12.8 and a strike rate of 99.22. The renowned commentator also feels KL Rahul would have opted to spend time with his young family as he was recently blessed with a baby girl.

“Who are the other absentees? KL Rahul isn’t there. Maybe spending time with his family. Rishabh Pant isn’t there. Ishan Kishan is making a comeback. You might not see him playing because Dhruv Jurel is the vice-captain. Maybe Rishabh Pant could have gone for the second match as well because you want to remain in batting form. IPL hasn’t been very kind to him,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube Channel.

Furthermore, Arshdeep Singh hasn’t been picked in India A squad but the left-arm pacer is in the reckoning with the senior team. Chopra said it would be a crucial series for Karun Nair, who has been in fantastic form in the domestic circuit and he would look to grab his chance.

“In bowling, Arshdeep isn’t there. He might still be considered after the playoffs, but Arshdeep’s absence is a significant miss. It will be a very important series for Karun Nair. There are three games. Your name can come if you do well. The focus will also be on Sai Sudharsan once he comes,” Chopra observed.

Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill will be added to the squad for the second game. The first game between India A and the England Lions begins on May 30.

India ‘A’ squad: Abhimanyu Easwaran (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karun Nair, Dhruv Jurel (VC) (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shardul Thakur, Ishan Kishan (wk), Manav Suthar, Tanush Kotian, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep, Harshit Rana, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sarfaraz Khan, Tushar Deshpande, Harsh Dubey