Last Update on: August 21st, 2023 at 02:38 pm
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced a 17-man squad for the upcoming Asia Cup, which is scheduled to commence on August 30. Selection committee chief Ajit Agarkar provided a significant update about the fitness of middle-order batters Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul.
KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer have returned to the national squad after a prolonged injury layoff. The batting duo is working hard to regain their full fitness at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. Their recovery process was the main reason for the delay in announcing the Indian squad.
KL Rahul Is Carrying A Niggle – Ajit Agarkar
Speaking at the press conference, Ajit Agarkar confirmed that Shreyas Iyer is fully fit, while KL Rahul is likely to miss one or two games in the tournament due to a niggle.
“Shreyas Iyer is fully fit. KL Rahul is carrying a niggle but expected to be fully fit by second or third match of the Asia Cup. Hence, Sanju Samson is travelling as a back-up player,” Agarkar said.
“But the physios, I am sure, will get a report, at some stage, they are all expected to be fit. If not at the start of the Asia Cup, probably from the 2nd and 3rd game (Rahul to be fit). He is well on track. Shreyas Iyer has been passed fit. Two important teams for us. We don’t have to pick the World Cup team till September 5. That gives us more time,” he added.
“Long-term injuries (for Iyer and Rahul). They have done really well (in terms of recovery) over the last 2 months. It’s a small setback (for Rahul) but we are all hopeful he will be okay.”
“Bumrah and Prasidh looked very hard on fitness, Iyer is fully fit, Rahul has a niggle, which has nothing to do with his initial injury,” Ajit Agarkar.
The 31-year-old batter’s last appearance was during the series against Australia earlier this year. He suffered a thigh injury during the Indian Premier League (IPL), which led to his exclusion from the World Test Championship (WTC) final. He underwent successful thigh surgery in May.
India Set To Take On Pakistan On September 2
The selectors backed Suryakumar Yadav despite his poor performances in the 50-over format. Meanwhile, young batter Tilak Varma received his maiden ODI call-up from the national cricket team. Sanju Samson has been named as the only travel backup for India in the six-team tournament.
The championship is scheduled to take place across Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The tournament’s first match will be played between Pakistan and Nepal on August 30 in Multan. The Indian team will face their arch-rivals Pakistan in their opening match at Pallekele on Saturday, September 2.
India Squad For Asia Cup 2023
Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (VC), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
Traveling stand-by player: Sanju Samson
