The Senior Men’s Selection Committee will convene at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) headquarters in Mumbai on Tuesday to select India’s squad for the upcoming ACC Men’s Asia Cup.
Following the selection meeting, a press conference will take place, attended by captain Suryakumar Yadav and the Chairman of the Senior Men’s Selection Committee, Ajit Agarkar, starting from 1.30 pm (India time).
Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, and Tilak Varma are expected to be the top three for the Men in Blue, with captain Suryakumar Yadav at number 4.
There are speculations that Test captain Shubman Gill might be chosen as the vice-captain due to his leadership skills demonstrated on the England tour.
Players such as Shreyas Iyer, Rinku Singh, Riyan Parag, and Washington Sundar are also in contention for selection. Jitesh Sharma and Yashavi Jaiswal are likely to be included as the backup wicketkeeper and opener, respectively.
Right-arm pacer Jasprit Bumrah has confirmed his availability for the tournament. He is expected to lead the bowling unit along with other fast bowlers like Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, and Harshit Rana.
The spinners likely to be included in the squad are Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, and Ravi Bishnoi.
The Asia Cup will take place in Dubai and Abu Dhabi from September 9 to 28.
The ACC has released a statement confirming the venues for all tournament fixtures. The tournament will follow the T20I format and feature eight teams: five full members of the Asian Cricket Council (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka), along with the UAE, Oman, and Hong Kong.
India, Pakistan, UAE, and Oman are in Group A, while Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Hong Kong are in Group B. Although India is the formal tournament host, a neutral venue will be provided for the opposing team for three years for competitions held in India or Pakistan, as per an agreement between the BCCI and the PCB.
During the tournament, Dubai will host 11 matches, and Abu Dhabi will be the venue for eight fixtures. The tournament opener is set between Afghanistan and Hong Kong on September 9 in Abu Dhabi.
India will begin their campaign against the UAE on September 10, while the highly anticipated match against Pakistan is scheduled for the 14th, with both fixtures to be played in Dubai. India will play their final group stage match against Oman on September 19 in Abu Dhabi.
After the group stage, the tournament will advance to the Super 4, where the top two teams from each group will qualify. If India finishes at the top of Group A, all of their Super 4 matches will be held in Dubai. If India finishes second, one of their Super 4 games will be held in Abu Dhabi and the remaining two in Dubai. The Super 4 stage will run from September 20 to 26. Dubai will host the final, scheduled for September 28.
