Who is Hrishikesh Hemant Kanitkar? India A head coach for upcoming England tour

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has officially announced the coaching staff for the upcoming tour of England by the India A team. Former Indian cricketer Hrishikesh Kanitkar has been appointed as the head coach. He will be joined by Subhadeep Ghosh from Assam, who will serve as the fielding coach, and Troy Cooley, who will take on the role of bowling coach.

Traditionally, VVS Laxman, the head of the National Cricket Academy (NCA), has assumed coaching responsibilities for the India A team or stepped in when the head coach of the main team is unavailable. However, this time, the BCCI has entrusted Kanitkar with the head coaching position, marking a significant step in his coaching career.

Who is Hrishikesh Hemant Kanitkar?

Hrishikesh Hemant Kanitkar, a distinguished left-handed batsman and right-arm off-break bowler, is a former Indian cricketer who had a brief yet impactful career in Test and One Day International (ODI) formats. Upon his retirement in 2015, he distinguished himself as one of only three batsmen to surpass 8,000 runs in the prestigious Ranji Trophy. Notably, he remains the only captain in the tournament's history to have secured both the Elite and Plate league titles.

The 18-member India A team is scheduled to depart for England in phases on May 25 and 26. Their first four-day match against the England Lions is set to commence on May 30 in Canterbury.

Following this encounter, the team will engage in a second four-day match in Northampton, starting June 6. Subsequently, India A will participate in a practice match against the senior Indian team from June 13 to 16 in Beckenham, which will be conducted as a closed-door intra-squad game.

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, Kheleel Ahmed, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sarfaraz Khan, Tushar Deshpande, Harsh Dubey

Note: Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan will join the squad ahead of the second match.

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