Rahul Dravid hails India's bench strength with World Cup in sight

India A coach and recent ICC Hall of Fame inductee, Rahul Dravid is pleased with the progression Indian youngsters are making through the A tours and believes that the bench strength that is being developed for the senior team is commendable. Dravid's India A got the better of England Lions in the final of the tri-series which involved West Indies A as well.

India A won four matches on the trot, including the final, after losing the series opener against England A. Dravid was impressed with the quality of cricket team played and happy that most of the players were given a chance in such conditions.

"A lot of these tours aren't necessarily about winning, but I think the quality of cricket we've played throughout this tournament - except for the first game where we didn't bat particularly well - has been really good," Dravid told ESPNcricinfo. "A lot of the boys have had their first-time exposure to these conditions; we tried to rotate the squad as much as we could and give everyone decent opportunities."

Deepak Chahar and Krunal Pandya were called to the senior T20I team for England tour after Jasprit Bumrah and Washington Sundar's respective exclusions. Dravid added that with the World Cup in sight, it's good to see some of the youngsters get their chance to play for the national team, and earn some much-needed exposure.

"It's been quite satisfying, some good performances. A tough game today as well, we had to fight back with the ball and the bat - so good to see them fight, good to see them compete in these conditions. Definitely some positives, as well as seeing some of the boys get into the national side as well, irrespective of the result.

"Especially with the World Cup in a year's time, it's nice to have bench strength, for the selectors to know there are good young players if the situation does arise. It's nice to replicate this experience leading into the World Cup, to give these boys some exposure in these conditions."