ICC World Cup 2023: KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer Out Of World Cup If They Don't Make It To Asia Cup 2023: Report

The BCCI is sweating over the fitness of KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer with the Asia Cup starting on August 30. Both are recovering from their respective injuries and it is very likely that none of them will recover in time for the continental tournament.

KL Rahul injured his hamstring during IPL 2023 and underwent surgery. Shreyas Iyer also went surgery due to his back injury and underwent a surgery as well. He missed the IPL and every international assignment that the Indian cricket team has been involved in.

With injuries to KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna, India have not been able to field their strongest ODI and T2-I squads since the start of the year. Bumrah and Krishna will make a comeback in the Ireland series.

Meanwhile, with Rahul and Iyer out of the team, the management has been forced to try out other options. Iyer batted at four and Rahul at five before their respective injuries providing a lot of stability to the middle order. Chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar, who will return back to India from the Caribbean on Friday will hold meetings in the next 48 hours to decide the way forward.

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BCCI Awaiting Fitness Status Of KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer For Asia Cup 2023

Rahul will have to undergo a fitness Test on August 18 following which the selectors and team management will take a final call for his inclusion for Asia Cup. While the Karnataka batter is likely to pass the fitness Test, there are still concerns about Iyer’s fitness. Iyer batted at number four before his injury and settled in that position. The number is again up for grabs with him getting injured.

If KL Rahul fails to recover in time, the likes of Sanju Samson and Tilak Varma will be auditioning for the number four slot. India tried Suryakumar Yadav as well but his lack of form in ODIs made the management think otherwise.

The Indian team for the Asia Cup is likely to be announced by August 16-17 as per reports and the two cricketers are running a race against time to get fit. In case both don’t get fit, India will be forced to continue with their experiments in the middle order.

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