Indian batter Sai Sudharsan has revealed that Rishabh Pant looks fitter ahead of the two four-day matches against South Africa A. Pant will lead India A as he makes a comeback to competitive cricket after suffering a toe injury on the England tour.

The left-hander was hit on the right toe by Chris Woakes in the fourth Test match at Old Trafford, Manchester. Pant will look to get the much-needed match practice under his belt before the Test series against South Africa.

“Rishabh looks fantastic, actually, may be fitter I would say. He had some time to build, put that training in his legs because sometimes when you get injured you have that specific time to work on whatever you want. I feel he looks a bit more fit and strong and as courageous as always he is,” said Sudharsan after India A’s training session.

Sudharsan, who scored a fine knock of 87 runs in the second Test against the West Indies, said Pant told the team that it is a great opportunity for them to get back their rhythm.

“The message from Pant is very clear. We were in a huddle on the first day of training and he was saying that this is a great opportunity for everybody to again get the rhythm of the game. At the same time, we are also playing to win and that is the main thing,” he noted

The left-handed batter from Tamil Nadu said India A matches are crucial, and it is a good chance for them to prepare for the series against the Proteas.

“India A matches are very important and we are lucky enough to have it just before the main series so that we take this as a big opportunity and build up really well and understand the conditions and obviously, plan accordingly for the series,” he added.

India A: Rishabh Pant (C, WK), Ayush Mhatre, N Jagdeesan (WK), Sai Sudharsan (VC), Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Khaleel Ahmed, Gurnoor Brar, Anshul Kamboj, Yash Thakur, Ayush Badoni, Saransh Jain.