Bengal batsman Abhimanyu Easwaran has been backed by India’s renowned skipper Sourav Ganguly to contend for the No. 3 place in the country’s Test squad. Although he has been on the periphery of the national team for a number of years, the seasoned domestic run scorer has not yet made his debut for the country.
Even though Easwaran has consistently performed well in first-class cricket, he has missed numerous opportunities when the Indian Test XI was reshuffled, which also happened at a period of transition for the present red-ball team.
Easwaran was included in India’s squads for recent overseas tours to Australia and England but spent both series on the bench. Even when Rohit Sharma was unavailable for the Perth Test of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, KL Rahul was preferred over him to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Ganguly thinks the 28-year-old still has an opportunity to establish himself in the side.
“He has age on his side. I still believe he will get his chance. I feel batters like Yashasvi, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, have all got runs. It’s only the No.3 slot that looked a bit fragile. Maybe Easwaran will be tried there,” Ganguly told the Times of India.
In the just finished Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, the No. 3 spot was still up for grabs as the management alternated between players like Sai Sudharsan and Karun Nair. With two ducks, Sudharsan amassed 140 runs at an average of 23.33 in six innings during the tour. Midway through the series, Nair was moved up to No. 3, but he also had trouble turning his respectable starts into significant contributions. In eight innings, he amassed 205 runs at an average of 25.62.
Easwaran’s father recently revealed that head coach Gautam Gambhir has assured him that his son will be given a fair run when the time comes. A consistent leader of the India “A” team, the Bengal batsman has already amassed an outstanding domestic record, 103 first-class matches, and 7841 runs at an average of 48.70. Despite scoring 11 and 80 while batting at number three in the second unofficial Test match against the England Lions, he has not yet been awarded the India cap.
In the 2025 Duleep Trophy, Easwaran is expected to head East Zone. Strong performances could ultimately pave the way for his eagerly anticipated debut as India prepares to play South Africa and the West Indies in the next home Test season.
