He is expected to fly to Melbourne on Tuesday (December 24).
Following Ravichandran Ashwin’s retirement in the middle of the ongoing Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT), the Indian management has now named Mumbai’s offspin-bowling allrounder Tanush Kotian as the veteran spinner’s replacement. For the unversed, Kotian had gone unsold at last month’s Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) auction.
The news of his selection was confirmed by the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) earlier today evening. The 26-year-old is now expected to fly to Melbourne on Tuesday (December 24) and join the squad ahead of the upcoming Boxing Day Test on December 26.
Tanush Kotian joins in a back-up role for Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja, the two spinners in the squad, after Axar Patel is believed to have been unavailable. Kotian is currently in Hyderabad as part of the Mumbai squad for the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT).
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Tanush Kotian has impressed with stellar domestic performances
Speaking about his credentials, Tanush Kotian won the Player-of-the-Tournament award in the previous Ranji Trophy season. He played a crucial role in Mumbai’s record title-winning campaign, amassing 502 runs at an average of 41.83 and claiming 29 wickets at an impressive average of 16.96.
SO far, he has featured in 33 first-class matches, taking 101 wickets at an average of 25.70. With the bat, he has scored 1,525 runs in 47 innings, averaging 41.21, including two centuries and 13 half-centuries. Additionally, Kotian was part of India A’s tour of Australia before the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, where he played a single match, contributing 44 runs and taking one wicket.
He has also plied his trade in the IPL, making his debut in the 2024 season for Rajasthan Royals but got to play just a solitary game in that edition.
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