Five big takeaways from India squad for Asia Cup 2023

BCCI announced a 17-member squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2023 in Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The Indian selection committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, announced a 17-member squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2023 in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The tournament will start on August 30 with a game between Pakistan and Nepal. Team India will face Pakistan in their tournament opener on September 2 at Pallekele.

Rohit Sharma will be leading the squad, while Hardik Pandya will be his deputy. KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer have made comebacks, while Tilak Varma got his maiden ODI call-up. Suryakumar Yadav is also part of the team, but Yuzi Chahal and Ravi Ashwin have been dropped. There are some major talking points in India's squad announced for the Asia Cup 2023.

Here are the top five takeaways from the India squad for Asia Cup 2023.

1. KL Rahul returns

KL Rahul has made a comeback with the squad. The 31-year-old suffered an injury during the Indian Premier League 2023 and was ruled out. He missed the second half of the tournament and also missed the WTC final. However, Rahul has made good progress and has taken part in practice games at the NCA. Being an important part of the middle order, the management wants him to have some game time for the coming World Cup at home. Though Ajit Agarkar confirmed that Rahul has a niggle, the good news is that it is not related to the injury he had in the IPL.

2. Shreyas Iyer returns

Another big name to make a comeback in the team is star batter Shreyas Iyer. The 28-year-old is a key member of the Indian batting lineup. Since his injury, the team has struggled to find a consistent batter at No. 4. Iyer suffered a back injury ahead of the IPL 2023, which ruled him out of the tournament. Since then, he has been at NCA for his rehab. But the good news for cricket fans is that he has completely recovered and is likely to be in action in the first game against Pakistan on September 2.

3. Yuzvendra Chahal dropped

The big name to be dropped from the team is veteran leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. The 33-year-old is going to miss the upcoming Asia Cup in 2023. Chahal is India's leading wicket-taker in the T20I format and has been the go-to spinner in ODIs as well. But since Kuldeep Yadav has made a remarkable entry into the squad after going through a low phase, the team has mostly stuck with Kuldeep. It is mainly because Kuldeep brings more variety to his bowling. However, it is not the end of the road for Chahal, as suggested by Agarkar.

4. Tilak Varma gets maiden ODI call-up

There is only one debutant in the 17-member squad, and he is Mumbai Indians batter Tilak Varma. The 20-year-old made his international debut in the recently concluded five-match T20I series against West Indies and ended the series as India's highest run-scorer. His consistency earned him his ODI call-up, and he is now part of the Indian squad for the Asia Cup 2023. He is a good batter and will provide the right-hand and left-hand combinations in the middle order for the team.

5. Prasidh Krishna returns

Another name to return to the ODI squad is Prasidh Krishna. The 27-year-old has been struggling with injuries for the last 6–8 months. But he is completely fit and is playing in the ongoing three-match series against Ireland. He has done pretty well with four wickets in two games, and now he is part of the Asia Cup 2023. Krishna brings pace and swing and is a good new ball bowler. He is back, along with Jasprit Bumrah, for ODIs. In 14 ODIs, Krishna has taken 25 wickets at 23.92.