Let's mentor: Rahul Dravid begins journey with India's Gen Next

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: From Virat Kohli to Shubman Gill, the Indian U-19 team has proven to be the feeder line senior national team, some through the India 'A' set-up in between, in the last decade or so.
With Rahul Dravid taking charge of the U-19 squad in 2015, the numerous talents emerging from the nook and corner of the country have got the perfect mentor to horn their skills.
Last year, Dravid's boys under the leadership of Prithvi Shaw went on to win the U-19 World Cup beating Australia in the final.Two from that squad, Shaw and Gill, have already donned the senior India colours.
The successors of Shaw and Gill have assembled in Thiruvananthapuram as the next generation of India U-19 cricketers begin their sojourn for the World Cup to be held in South Africa next year with a two-match 'Youth Test' series against visiting South African U-19 side starting on Thursday here at the St Xavier's College ground in Thumba, the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram city. The two four-day matches will be followed by a quadrangular series involving India U-19 'A', India U-19 'B', South Africa U-19 and Afghanistan U-19 which will also be played here.
Led by wicketkeeper-batsman Suraj Ahuja from Rajasthan, India's young turks will start favourites in the 'Youth Test' series. Mumbai batsmen Divyaansh Saxena and Yashasvi Jaiswal will be hoping to make a mark with the bat. Focus will also be on two young Kerala batsmen, Vathsal Govind and Varun Nayanar, who have been on a run-scoring spree in the recently concluded Cooch Behar Trophy tournament. And like rest of his counterparts, Vathsal is eagerly looking forward to his junior India debut. "It's an absolute honour and pride to play for India and to be under Rahul sir's guidance. I would take all the necessary advices that would make me better as a player and a person," Vathsal told TOI on the eve of the match.
In bowling, Manipur's left-arm pace bowler Rex Rajkumar Singh would be India's key. Rex, who bagged all 10 wickets in an innings of a Cooch Behar Trophy match against Arunachal Pradesh, is the first player from northeast to play for any Indian side.
On the other hand, adjusting to the conditions could be the big challenge for the visiting side. Though they are coming to India after a week-long camp back home, South African skipper Matthew Montgomery said that beating India would be a tough ask. "India is a good side and they definitely have an edge over us. It won't be easy for us but we will do our best," Montgomery said.
India U-19 squad: Suraj Ahuja, Divyaansh Saxena, Varun Nayanar, Avneesh Sudha, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Kandpal, Shaurya Saran, Hrithik Shokeen, Manav Suthar, Manishi, Sabir Khan, Anshul Kamboj, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Rohit Dattatraya, Rex Singh, Vathsal Govind.
South Africa U-19 squad: Matthew Montgomery, Luke Beaufort, Jonathan Bird, Achille Cloete, Gerald Coetzee, Marco Jansen, Thamsanqa Khumalo, Bonga Makaka, Andile Mogakane, Kgaudise Molefe, Lifa Ntanzi, Bryce Parsons, Siya Plaatjie, Ruan Terblanche, Nonelela Yikha.