BCCI announces India’s Asia Cup 2025 squad; Shubman Gill named vice-captain

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, has named the strong Indian squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025 on Tuesday, August 19, during a press conference in Mumbai.

Asia Cup 2025, which is scheduled to start on Tuesday, September 9, is an eight-team affair, and India is part of Group A alongside Pakistan, Oman, and the UAE. Their first game is against the UAE on Wednesday, September 9. Subsequently, they will lock horns with the arch-rivals Pakistan on Sunday, September 14, before concluding their group stage against Oman on Friday, September 19.

Moving into the details of India’s T20I squad, the Indian Test captain Shubman Gill has been announced as India’s new T20I vice-captain, replacing Axar Patel, who was Surya’s deputy in the previous T20I series.

"We obviously see some leadership qualities in him (Gill), and his form in England was what we were hoping for. [He] exceeded all our expectations, which is a great sign when there's so much pressure as captain," Agarkar stated on Gill’s appointment as vice-captain.

Interestingly, both Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma continue to be a part of the strong squad. With Gill making a comeback, either Samson or Sharma needs to be excluded from the playing XI.

Speaking about other batting options, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, and Jitesh Sharma are part of the batting unit. Moreover, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, and Shivam Dube are the three all-round options available. 

Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana form the pace battery while Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakaravarthy are part of the spin attack. Surprisingly, Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal couldn’t be a part of the final squad.

"With regard to Yashasvi, it's just unfortunate again. There's Abhishek Sharma: what he's done over the last year or so - plus he can bowl a little bit - he gives us that option if required. One of these guys was going to miss out. Yashasvi just has to wait for his chance,” Agarkar stated.

"With regard to Shreyas, who can he replace? No fault of his, nor is it ours. At the moment, you can just pick 15. So he will have to wait for his chance,” he added.

India’s Asia Cup 2025 squad: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson.

Reserve players: Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal.

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