Gavaskar's son to replace Kaif
Fox Sports
ROHAN Gavaskar, son of Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar, is reportedly set to replace injured middle-order batsman Mohammad Kaif for the triangular one-day cricket series starting next Friday.
Gavaskar Jr, who captains the Bengal team in the Indian domestic cricket competition, is tipped to come in for Kaif, who has been ruled out due to a thumb injury, the website mid-day.com reported today.
Citing reliable sources in Kolkata, the website said the left-hander is currently in the central Indian city of Jamshedpur, leading Bengal in the Ranji Trophy.
It said Gavaskar Jr will be rewarded for his performance for India A against Sri Lanka A in Pune a month ago when he blasted 173.
The 27-year-old had also done well during the India A team's recent tour of England and the domestic Challenger Series at the start of the season.
He struggled early in his career and struggled to keep a regular spot with his home side of Bombay, but the move across the country to Bengal paid rich dividends.
In 81 first-class games, Gavaskar Jr has amassed 4913 runs at an average of 46.15, with 14 hundreds, 23 fifties and a highest score of 212 not out.
Taking into account the injuries carried by a few of the Indian players, medium pacer Amit Bhandari is also likely to be included in the one-day squad in Australia as an extra bowler, mid-day.com said.