I see a lot more NZ interest in this thread. Kiwis really love their domestic cricket scene, don't they? I do hope we have more Ind/NZ reserves/futures cricket events on a regular basis- it's better for these forums
About Praveen Kumar, let's also not make him into the sole saviour of the Indian pace attack, when he himself needs to be saved. Poor form over the past few seasons and repeated injuries virtually rules him out as an automatic selection, when lack of pace is (yet again) an area of weakness in the Indian attack. If he can run through teams in Ranji Trophy for two seasons in a row, secure a County contract and not get into rough fights anywhere along the way, and also score plenty of runs (I'd rather take a Pranky with a 22 run average than a Pranky with a 2-12 run average) like Kyle Abbott or Simon Harmer from SA, or some of the NZ-A bowlers, and also improve his fielding to the level of his SA/NZ/Aussie counterparts, he may be in line for a place in the national team again. But that's a long wishlist.
About Ishwar Pandey, IPL's apparent irrelevance notwithstanding, Ranji Trophy does not give you Chris Gayle or David Warner or Kumar Sangakkara. It doesn't even give you the best Indian batsmen, who are touring or hosting when the tournament is going on. I wouldn't want Ishwar Pandey, at this moment, bowling to a top international batsman on a flat deck, because he'd either go wicketless for long periods in a Test like Ishant in Australia last time, or get pounded out of the match without finishing his stock in limited-overs. But one more season, with knowledge picked up in A-team tours and facing visiting teams, will make him a better player- and two, even better.
While Pankaj Singh should get more chances for India A, it shouldn't be in a tournament where the average age and experience is very low. He has, anyway, done well for India A, better than he has for Rajasthan. It's anybody's guess when Umesh will break down again, when selectors' patience with Ishant runs out (or his ODI luck flips against him), when the man from Lagaan eventually runs out of tricks, so Pankaj isn't really out of it- and shouldn't be.
Even as I type, the batsmen who can bowl for India A are getting milked merrily by the NZ-A batsmen, while the strike bowlers rest. Since India-A have stretched their batting all the way down to ten, I'd expect this to be either a tame draw or a hard-fought draw, but a win is unlikely.