The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has unveiled an updated 15-player roster for the men’s cricket team set to compete in the Asian Games 2023. The games are slated to run from September 23 to October 8 in Hangzhou, China.
The original team was introduced in July, with one recent alteration. Akash Deep will step in for Shivam Mavi, who’s recuperating from a back injury and has been ruled out from the trip to Hangzhou.
Cricket enthusiasts can anticipate T20 matches at the Asian Games 2023 between September 28 and October 8. These encounters will be hosted at the Zhejiang University of Technology Pingfeng Cricket Field.
Given the proximity of the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup launching in India on October 5, many primary members like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli won’t feature in the Hangzhou Games. Consequently, India will largely send a secondary team.
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However, the Hangzhou squad isn’t short of talent, boasting many standouts from the Indian Premier League (IPL). Among them, 26-year-old Ruturaj Gaikwad of the Chennai Super Kings is set to lead the team. The line-up also includes the prolific Arshdeep Singh, Punjab Kings’ top wicket-taker for 2023, and Yashasvi Jaiswal from Rajasthan Royals, who recently marked a debut century against the West Indies. Rinku Singh, notable for his performance with Kolkata Knight Riders this season, will also don Indian colors.
The Indian men’s team will initiate their journey in the Asian Games 2023 from the quarter-finals on October 3. Notably, this will be the maiden participation of both Indian men and women’s cricket teams in the Asian Games.
Cricket has been part of the Asian Games twice, with previous editions in Guangzhou 2010 and Incheon 2014, with Bangladesh clinching the inaugural title and Sri Lanka being the current holders. Afghanistan secured second place in both instances.
It’s worth highlighting that this isn’t the men’s cricket team’s first appearance in a multi-sport event. They were part of the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur. Those matches, though, weren’t granted international status and are cataloged as List A games.
India Squad
Ruturaj Gaikwad (captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rahul Tripathi, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wicket-keeper), Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Shivam Dube, Prabhsimran Singh (wicket-keeper), Akash Deep
Standby players: Yash Thakur, Sai Kishore, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Sai Sudarsan