Last Update on: September 15th, 2023 at 02:42 pm
Ajit Agarkar, the chairman of the senior selection panel, has said that Tilak Varma’s place in the team for the World Cup is not guaranteed. The comment came after the selectors gave the youngster a surprise maiden ODI call-up for the upcoming Asia Cup 2023.
Tilak Varma has been named in India’s 17-member squad for the forthcoming continental championship. The squad was announced on Monday (August 21). Tilak Varma is not the only notable inclusion in the team. Apart from him, the likes of Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah, and Prasidh Krishna have been named in the team too.
All four players are returning to the ODI team after battling injuries. Both Bumrah and Krishna remained on the sidelines for nearly a year before making a comeback in the ongoing T20I series against Ireland. On the other hand, Iyer and Rahul are sidelined since March and May respectively.
Suryakumar Yadav has also maintained to retain his spot in the ODI team despite his poor performances in the 50-over format this year. Allrounder Hardik Pandya has been named as captain Rohit Sharma’s deputy for the continental championship.
Ajit Agarkar on Tilak Varma:
One of the major highlights of the India squad for Asia Cup 2023 is definitely the inclusion of Tilak Varma. There were calls from several quarters to include the youngster in the ODI squad after his impressive debut T20I series. He made his debut against West Indies earlier this month and hit the ground running in international cricket.
The southpaw showed remarkable maturity in his very first series as he batted well under pressure. Although India ended up losing the series, he finished the five-match series as the highest run scorer. And the good performance has seen him getting rewarded with his maiden ODI call-up.
Ajit Agarkar, however, has made it clear to the youngster that he could still be axed from the team for the World Cup. While the squad for the World Cup won’t be much different than the Asia Cup squad but few players are likely to be axed as only 15 can be a part of the World Cup team. While Agarkar was all praise for Tilak Varma, he quickly mentioned that he is still not guaranteed a spot for the World Cup.
“He’s part of the Asian Games. This isn’t the World Cup squad. If he does make it, then that’s irrelevant (Asian Games). We have got the luxury of picking 17 right now.
“We saw some real promise, we have obviously known the potential. We saw some real promise not only in terms of performance but in temperament. It gives us an opportunity to take him with the team for more exposure,” said Agarkar before stating that Tilak Varma will have to do well to make it to the World Cup.
Ajit Agarkar on Tilak Varma's inclusion pic.twitter.com/IDsLnraSF2
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India squad for Asia Cup 2023:
Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna.
