Ruturaj Gaikwad, the right-handed batter, has been appointed as the India men’s T20 team captain for the upcoming Asian Games. The tournament is scheduled from September 19 to October 8 in Hangzhou, China. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced a 15-member squad for the tournament, including promising young talents such as Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, and Jitesh Sharma, who are all uncapped in T20 cricket.
Despite Kolkata Knight Riders’ disappointing performance in the recent Indian Premier League (IPL), where they finished in the 7th spot on the points table, Nitish Rana had a decent outing with the bat. He scored an impressive 413 runs in 14 matches, including three half-centuries, and emerged as the second-highest run-scorer for KKR after Rinku Singh. However, his omission from the Asian Games 2023 squad left him disheartened, as he expressed his disappointment through a cryptic tweet, accompanied by a heartbreak emoji, from his official Twitter handle.
On a positive note, this selection provides an excellent opportunity for young talents to represent the country internationally. Rinku Singh, the Uttar Pradesh batter, earned his first call-up to the Indian squad after a highly successful IPL 2023 season with Kolkata Knight Riders. Another notable inclusion is Jitesh Sharma, known for his finishing skills, who found a place in the squad after being left out for the T20Is against West Indies, despite his impressive performances for Vidarbha and Punjab Kings.
❤️🩹
— Nitish Rana (@NitishRana_27) July 17, 2023
The Asian Games 2023 also gives all-rounders Washington Sundar and Rahul Tripathi a chance to showcase their T20 skills again. Both players were left out of the upcoming T20Is against West Indies, making the Asian Games an ideal platform for them to reaffirm their abilities and contribute to the success of the Indian team.
India men’s squad: Ruturaj Gaikwad (capt), 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 Dube, Prabhsimran Singh (wk
Stand-bys: Yash Thakur, R Sai Kishore, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, B Sai Sudarsan
