The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) men’s selection committee are set to announce the Indian squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2023 on Sunday – April 20. The rest of the teams taking part in the Asia Cup 2023 – Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal – have announced their respective squads for the tournament while only Team India and Sri Lanka are yet to announce their squad.
According to Cricbuzz website, the delay is naming the Asia Cup 2023 squad of India is due to the fact that the selection committee want to confirm pacer Jasprit Bumrah’s fitness in the first T20I match against Ireland on Friday.
“The selection committee is yet to receive information about when the team for the Asia Cup will be finalized. With Dravid and his team back in India, it is anticipated that the selection process will take place in the coming days. Some sources suggest that the selection might happen after the first Twenty20I in Ireland, where Jasprit Bumrah is set to return to action after nearly 11 months,” the Cricbuzz report stated.
Although the report didn’t mention when the Indian squad for the Asia Cup 2023 will be announced but it is expected that the official announcement will be made on Sunday during India’s second T20I match against Ireland in Dublin.
Apart from Bumrah, the selectors are also seeking clarity over the fitness of batters KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer – both of whom are recovering from injuries at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. Both Rahul and Iyer appeared in a practice game earlier this week.
“Regarding KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, who recently participated in a warm-up game at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru, there has been no official communication from the NCA managers to the selectors. While it’s not to imply that either player hasn’t achieved match fitness, the formal approval from the NCA is still pending. The expectation is that the NCA will inform both the BCCI and the selectors ahead of the selection meeting,” the Cricbuzz report added.
Team India will open their Asia Cup 2023 campaign with clash against arch-rivals Pakistan on September 2 in Kandy.
Asia Cup 2023 Squads
Nepal: Rohit Paudel (captain), Mahamad Asif Sheikh, Kushal Bhurtel, Lalit Rajbanshi, Bhim Sharki, Kushal Malla, Dipendra Singh Airee, Sandeep Lamichhane, Karan KC, Gulshan Kumar Jha, Aarif Sheikh, Sompal Kami, Pratish GC, Kishor Mahato, Sundeep Jora, Arjun Saud, Shyam Dhakal
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (captain), Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Tayyab Tahir, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Haris, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi
Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan (captain), Litton Das, Tanzid Tamim, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Hasan Mahmud, Sheikh Mahedi, Nasum Ahmed, Shamim Hossain, Afif Hossain, Shoriful Islam, Ebadot Hossain, Naim Sheikh