3 players for watch out for in IND-A vs SA-A 1st Unofficial Test 2025 ft. Rishabh Pant 

India 'A' will play against South Africa 'A' in two unofficial Tests ahead of the Proteas' tour of the subcontinent in the coming weeks. The first first-class contest is underway at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru on Thursday, October 30.

The BCCI have named a strong outfit across the two matches, with the majority of the Test squad members scheduled to play the second contest. In the first Test, India 'A' opted to bowl first after winning the toss, with Anshul Kamboj getting an early breakthrough for the side.

The visitors have since recovered well to 153-2 in 39 overs, and are on the lookout to dominate the opening day.

India A squad for the 1st four-day match: 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

On that note, let us take a look at three players to watch out for in IND-A vs SA-A 1st Unofficial Test 2025.

#1 Rishabh Pant

The star wicket-keeper makes a return to competitive cricket since his layoff due to a foot fracture that he sustained during the fourth Test against England amid the 2025 Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. Not only does Pant make a return, but he also leads the India 'A' outfit to prepare for the upcoming home series against South Africa.

India 'A' batter Sai Sudharsan recently remarked that Rishabh Pant is looking fitter than ever, which only builds the excitement behind his comeback. The southpaw is expected to be an automatic pick for the Test squad since he has completely recovered.

It would be interesting to see how long it takes for Rishabh Pant to shake off the rustiness. The last time he had endured a long injury layoff was in the aftermath of the unfortunate car accident. On that occasion, he did not need too much time to find his groove as he had an eventful 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) season, and made it to the 2024 T20 World Cup squad as well.

#2 Rajat Patidar

The flashy middle-order batter is slowly rising in the pecking order courtesy of his recent performances, and could well be soon in the scheme of the Indian middle-order as well, if he keeps it up, and a spot becomes available. He slammed two hundreds while leading the Central Zone to the title in the 2025 Duleep Trophy.

Patidar scored a fifty in the first innings of the Irani Trophy for the Rest of India team, while smashing an unbeaten ton to kick-start his Ranji Trophy season. Coming into the India 'A' setup in such a rich vein of red-ball form, he is undoubtedly one of the players to watch out for against South Africa 'A'.

With India still undecided over a middle-order slot in the playing XI, with the likes of Dhruv Jurel and Devdutt Padikkal currently in contention, Patidar could very well enter the conversation with yet another prolific outing in the coming days ahead of the squad selection.

#3 Ayush Mhatre

The Mumbai youngster, since his prolific 2025 IPL campaign for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), has been fast-tracked in the India youth setup. He even led the India U-19 side in England and Australia. Although the 18-year-old has been inconsistent, he does have two hundreds and a fifty to his name across his last 10 outings for the team.

Mhatre recently featured in Mumbai's 2025-26 Ranji Trophy opener against Jammu and Kashmir, where he recorded a couple of cameos, but could not build on it. It would be exciting to see the young talent, in India 'A' colors for the first time, lining up against bowlers like Tshepo Moreki, Lutho Sipamla, and Prenelan Subrayen, who have featured in international cricket.

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Edited by Gokul Nair