Jharkhand batter Shikhar Mohan has earned a place in the India A squad for the four-day matches against New Zealand A following his impressive performances in the ongoing Ranji Trophy. The 21-year-old left-handed opener has scored centuries in both of his first two matches this season. Mohan will join the India A squad for the second and third matches as India prepare for their upcoming Test series against New Zealand.

Mohan began his Ranji Trophy campaign with an impressive 143 off 196 balls against Kerala, hitting 18 fours and two sixes. His innings helped Jharkhand secure three points through a first-innings lead. He continued his excellent form against Maharashtra, scoring 127 in the second innings under pressure. Jharkhand were trailing by 358 runs and facing the possibility of a heavy defeat, but Mohan's century helped the team avoid it and earn a point. Since making his first-class debut last year, Mohan has scored 1,109 runs in 12 matches at an average of 61.61, establishing himself as a promising young batter.

The three four-day matches between India A and New Zealand A will help India prepare for the upcoming two-Test series. Several players with international experience, including KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, Dhruv Jurel, Devdutt Padikkal, Sai Sudharsan, Washington Sundar and Akash Deep, are part of the squad. The India A series will begin at Lincoln, followed by matches in Christchurch from October 31 to November 3 and Lincoln from November 7 to 10. 

India A squad: 

Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, R Smaran, Kumar Kushagra (wicketkeeper), Dhruv Jurel (captain and wicketkeeper), Washington Sundar, Auqib Nabi, Akash Deep, Anshul Kamboj, Manav Suthar, Mukesh Choudhary, B Sai Sudharsan, Yash Rathod, Mukesh Kumar, Rishabh Pant (subject to fitness) and Shikhar Mohan (for the second and third matches).