On Friday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) unveiled the 15-member Indian men’s cricket team and five standby players for the upcoming Asian Games 2023. The tournament will be held in Hangzhou, the People’s Republic of China, from September 23 to October 8.
The men’s cricket event at the Asian Games 2023 will be played in the T20 format and is scheduled to take place from September 28 to October 8. All the matches will be held at the Zhejiang University of Technology Pingfeng Cricket Field.
Due to the overlapping schedule with the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup starting in India on October 5, India will be sending a predominantly second-string side to the Hangzhou Games, with key players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli absent from the lineup.
Nonetheless, the Hangzhou-bound squad will showcase several promising young talents, many of whom have excelled in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Leading the team as captain will be 26-year-old Ruturaj Gaikwad, who represents the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL.
Among the notable selections is left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh, who emerged as the highest wicket-taker for the Punjab Kings in the IPL 2023 season. Yashasvi Jaiswal of the Rajasthan Royals, who made headlines with a debut century in the ongoing Test against the West Indies, has also secured a spot in the team. Rinku Singh, known for his impactful performances for the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2023, has received his first call-up to the Indian team.
This is the first time that India has named teams for both the men’s and women’s cricket competitions at the Asian Games. Cricket has previously been featured at the Asian Games in Guangzhou 2010 and Incheon 2014, with Bangladesh winning the inaugural edition and Sri Lanka being the defending champions. Afghanistan finished as runners-up in both instances.
NEWS 🚨- Team India (Senior Men) squad for 19th Asian Games: Ruturaj Gaikwad (Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rahul Tripathi, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Shivam Mavi, Shivam…
— BCCI (@BCCI) July 14, 2023
It’s worth noting that this will be the second occasion where the men’s cricket team participates in a multi-sport event. The Indian men’s cricket team previously played in the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, competing in a 50-over format. However, those matches did not hold international status and were classified as List A games.
Team India: 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 Mavi, Shivam Dube, Prabhsimran Singh (wicket-keeper)
Standby players: Yash Thakur, Sai Kishore, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Sai Sudarsan