Mumbai: India has unveiled a formidable 15-member squad for the upcoming Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup, set to take place in Oman from October 18 to 27. The tournament will see participation from eight teams, including Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and hosts Oman. Along with the ‘A’ team from India, two qualifiers UAE and Hong Kong will also be part of the tournament.
Tilak Varma, the star from Mumbai Indians, has been named captain of the India A side. The squad also features Abhishek Sharma, who struggled in the recent T20I series against Bangladesh but will be returning to the Emerging Asia Cup for a second consecutive year. Last year, Abhishek was part of the team, captained by Yash Dhull, that finished as runners-up after losing to Pakistan in the final.
The squad is packed with talent, including Lucknow Super Giants’ batter Ayush Badoni, Chennai Super Kings’ Nishant Sindhu, and Mumbai Indians’ power hitters Nehal Wadhera and Ramandeep Singh.
The bowling unit will be spearheaded by experienced pacer Vaibhav Arora, with young Rasikh Salam also in the mix. The team boasts a strong spin attack with Rahul Chahar and R Sai Kishore leading the charge.
Full India A Squad for Emerging Asia Cup 2024:
Tilak Varma (Captain), Abhishek Sharma, Ayush Badoni, Nishant Sindhu, Ramandeep Singh, Anuj Rawat, Prabh Simran Singh, Nehal Wadhera, Anshul Kamboj, Hrithik Shokeen, Aaqib Khan, Vaibhav Arora, Rasikh Salam, Sai Kishore, Rahul Chahar
This will be the sixth edition of the Emerging Asia Cup, an initiative by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) to provide a platform for young cricketers to gain experience and cope with the pressures of international competition. India won the inaugural tournament in 2013, defeating Pakistan in the final. While India reached the final in 2018 and 2023, Pakistan and Sri Lanka remain the most successful teams, each with two titles to their name.