India, Pakistan and New Zealand have named A-teams to visit Cairns and Darwin for a round of four-day, one-day and Twenty20 games against each other and a powerful Australia A team. It is an exciting blend of youth and experience, with youngsters from the Under 19 teams, former international players in exile and others on the cusp of national selection involved. Here is an introduction to some of the faces and names that might stand out this series, some of whom it’s worth keeping an eye upon.

Phil Jaques (AUS)
Was he not Australian, Phil Jaques would have been a regular in international cricket by now. Instead he’s had to stick to battering domestic attacks for the last couple of years. His batting took New South Wales to the Pura Cup in 2004-05, and then to the ING Trophy the following season, and even then he has not been content, spending the off-seasons piling up runs for Yorkshire and Worcestershire. His last two matches in the county championship saw him pile up double hundreds, a concerning sign for opposition bowlers in the next few weeks. A good series here and Jaques might be able to force his way into the Australian test side for the Ashes.

Rohit Sharma ( IND)
Sharma caught the attention of national selectors in just his second List-A game as he scored a classy hundred for West Zone against a strong North Zone attack in the Deodhar Trophy. Sent to the UAE for the EurAsia Cup A-team tournament, Sharma impressed further with a consistent display, the highlight of which was his composed half century against Pakistan A. He is yet to make his first class debut, but is already being acknowledged as one of India’s brightest future prospects.

Bazid Khan (PAK)
The son of Majid Khan, Bazid caught selectors’ eyes with his assured strokeplay on the domestic circuit and made his test debut last year in the West Indies, playing only one match with little success. Runs followed at the A-team level though, when he succeeded against Australia and a strong performance here could see him get another shot at a test middle order berth.

Shikhar Dhawan ( IND)
A stylish, composed left handed opener, Dhawan’s star rose rapidly during the Under 19 World Cup two years ago when he had a standout season with the bat. Since then he hass been one of the brighter lights in a Delhi side that has struggled in the last season or two, with runs at the top of the order, particularly in the shorter form of the game. Unlucky to miss out on selection for the national side some time ago, when Robin Uthappa was preferred, but a cap for him does not seem too far away.

Jamie How (NZ)
A compact right handed opener, How debuted in an ODI against Sri Lanka at the end of last year, beginning with a solid if unspectacular half century. A test spot followed, but runs did not, as How first struggled against the touring West Indians, and then the fire of Dale Steyn in South Africa a few months later. But with the New Zealand side far from settled, How will know a good series here could get him back into the reckoning.

Shaun Tait (AUS)
Explosive, erratic, exciting. Tait is an unpredictable speedster with a slinging action and a propensity to make things happen even on the flattest surfaces. Batsmen will not enjoy facing him; Tait’s already cracked a few helmets and shattered plenty of stumps, and is being looked at as a future Australian spearhead in a few years’ time.

Piyush Chawla ( IND)
Plenty have tipped him to continue India’s legacy of great spin bowlers. It may seem like a huge ask, but Chawla’s record so far has indicated a great deal of promise, with bagfuls of wickets at Under 19 and A-team level, and an excellent debut season for Uttar Pradesh last year. Chawla earned a test cap against England a few months ago, and while appearing a little too raw, impressed plenty with his loop and the heart he showed.

Mansoor Amjad (PAK)
Rated as one of Pakistan’s best young spin bowling talents, Mansoor Amjad entered the spotlight with a superb performance in the Under 19 World Cup in 2004 that was complemented with some hard hitting. A dangerous leg spinner and talented with the willow, Amjad has plenty of potential to become a major all-rounder on the international stage in the future - and there’s plenty of time ahead, for he’s only 18.

Mark Cosgrove (AUS)
Cosgrove began the last Australian season with a one-month suspension due to his weight and fitness problems. After losing weight and taking a fair amount of flak from the press along the way, Cosgrove returned to play for South Australia and returned fire with his willow. Runs flowed as Cosgrove finished high on the batting averages lists, and was rewarded with an ODI cap on the Bangladesh tour - one that he made the most of with a half century on debut. Nicknamed ‘Baby Boof’ for his resemblance to mentor Darren Lehmann in waistline and strokeplay, Cosgrove is one of a handful of players expected to form the bulwark of Australia’s batting in the future.

Parthiv Patel (IND)
Thrown into the test side at 17, Parthiv initially impressed before his keeping began to fall away in India’s tour of Australia in 2003-04. While his batting prospered, with gritty displays against the likes of McGrath, Shoaib and Warne in the coming months, his glovework deteriorated further until he lost his place in the side and returned to play for Gujarat. With MS Dhoni now having taken over the keeper’s slot in both the test and ODI sides, a return to the Indian side appears a long way off, but not impossible.

(Salil Benegal is based between Chicago and Singapore, and switches between studying chemistry and freelancing (or trying to) in cricket and travel writing. A strong fan of both the Indian and Australian cricket teams, Salil also maintains a cricket-centric blog at http://www.sbenegal.blogspot.com)

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