India announce new captain for men's team for Asian Games

Mumbai:India have named their men's squad for the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou that will be held from September 19 to October 8.Ruturaj Gaikwad has been appointed as the captain of the Indian men's squad for the upcoming Asian Games T20 competition. Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, and Jitesh Sharma are all part of a young group of players named for the competition.

Since the ICC Men's Cricket ODI World Cup is scheduled to commence in India on October 5, just two days before the conclusion of the Asian Games cricket tournament, BCCI have decided to field a second-string men's side in Hangzhou.

Among the T20I players to tour West Indies, six are retained: Jaiswal, Tilak, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, and Avesh Khan.

Rinku Singh, who showcased his power-hitting and finishing abilities in the Indian Premier League, earned a maiden call-up, while Jitesh Sharma returns to the T20I squad after being left out of the touring party to West Indies.Prabhsimran Singh is the other wicketkeeping option in the squad.

Washington Sundar and Rahul Tripathi also return to the T20I squad as does all-rounder Shivam Dube, who last played for India in 2020. Shahbaz Ahmed and Shivam Mavi also feature in the squad named for the competition.

Among the reserve players are Yash Thakur, Sai Kishore, Sai Sudharsan and capped players Venkatesh Iyer and Deepak Hooda.

Speaking on the most recent episode of The ICC Review, Ricky Ponting was full of praise for both Jaiswal and Gaikwad following their impressive performances in the Indian Premier League.

"(Yashasvi) Jaiswal’s IPL was something special. He almost just flicked a switch and turned into a superstar overnight," Ponting said."Everyone knew that he was a talented youngster, but what I saw in this year's IPL, he's got all sorts of talent."

"I'm on record saying that I think (Ruturaj) Gaikwad’s the same (as Jaiswal). I think he could be a very serious Test match player or all-format player really in the next couple of years."(UNI)

Squad: 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 Dube, Prabhsimran Singh (wk)

Standby list of players: Yash Thakur, Sai Kishore, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Sai Sudarsan.