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The BCCI announced India's squad for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia on Friday, making notable adjustments to the lineup. Mohammed Shami has been excluded as he didn’t recover in time, and Kuldeep Yadav’s omission from the 18-member squad has come as a surprise to many.

New faces, including Nitish Reddy, Harshit Rana, and Abhimanyu Easwaran, are contenders for their debut Test cap. KL Rahul has retained his spot in the squad despite being dropped from the playing eleven for the ongoing third Test match against New Zealand in Pune.

Abhimanyu Easwaran, 29, has been close to breaking into the playing eleven for several years but has yet to make his debut. With Captain Rohit Sharma reportedly doubtful for the first Test in Perth, Easwaran, the in-form Bengal opener, could step in as his replacement.

Besides Kuldeep and Shami, there are no significant exclusions in India’s squad for the five-match series beginning on November 22. According to the BCCI’s statement, Kuldeep is dealing with a chronic left groin issue and will join the new BCCI Centre of Excellence after the Pune Test for further rehabilitation.

India’s squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy:

Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar.

Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed