Sai Sudharsan Unfazed by Competition for Spots, Focused on His Own Path

India A batter Sai Sudharsan has said he is not concerned about competition for places in the Indian team and remains focused on building his own career path. The 24-year-old made the remarks ahead of India A’s first one-day match against Australia A in Puducherry.

Sudharsan missed India’s two-match Test series in Sri Lanka due to a toe injury, with Devdutt Padikkal taking his place at No. 3. However, the Tamil Nadu batter said he does not view the situation as a battle between players for a spot in the team.

“I feel mentally we have to understand that we are all writing our own story rather than playing against each other,” Sudharsan said. “Having trust and belief in ourselves and divine timing will make everything pan out fantastically well.”

Sudharsan is primarily an opener in white-ball cricket, having regularly opened for Tamil Nadu in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Gujarat Titans in the IPL. With several players competing for top-order positions in the India A squad, his role in the upcoming one-day series remains a key talking point.

Along with Sudharsan, Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Devdutt Padikkal and Arshin Kulkarni are among the top-order options. Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad is expected to bat at No. 4, a position he recently occupied for the senior Indian side in the ODIs against the West Indies.

Sudharsan, however, said he is not thinking about where he needs to fit into the batting order.

“I don't think I am looking at finding a place anywhere. I have always been opening in 50-over cricket and T20 cricket. So, I look at it that way and try to give my best and perform so that the team wins from a good position. That's what I'm focused on,” he said.

The batter recently returned from injury during India A’s four-day matches. He scored a steady half-century on a challenging pitch in the opening game before making just 8 and 12 in the second match.

He will now look to regain his rhythm in white-ball cricket against an Australia A side featuring several players with international experience.

Sudharsan believes the intensity of A-team tours closely resembles international cricket and sees the series as an important opportunity to prepare for the challenges ahead.

“The intensity on A tours is almost on par with international cricket,” he said. “As Bala Sir [India A head coach L Balaji] said, shadow tours help fine-tune our batting, bowling, and decision-making continuously.”

With the Border-Gavaskar Trophy approaching, Sudharsan also highlighted the importance of A tours in helping players adapt to conditions and understand the environment they may encounter in Australia.

“With the Border-Gavaskar Trophy coming up in a few months, these multi-day A games help us understand how pitches behave and how Australian culture operates. Tomorrow's game will feel like a proper international match,” he said.

India A head coach L Balaji, meanwhile, praised the depth of Indian cricket and the opportunities available to players across formats.

“Four teams were competing simultaneously - Rest of India in Srinagar, India A in Pondicherry, the main [ODI] team in the West Indies, and another in the Asian Games,” Balaji said.

According to Balaji, the competition within Indian cricket is healthy and provides players with opportunities to develop across all three formats.

“It's good to have healthy competition. Players have space to work across three formats. The mindset should be to make the most of these ample opportunities, and those performing are getting their due,” he added.

For Sudharsan, the immediate focus is clear: make the most of his opportunity against Australia A and let his performances determine the next chapter of his career.