Bumrah, Iyer & KL Rahul Make Much-Awaited Comeback In India’s Asia Cup Squad; IND Vs PAK On Sept 2

New Delhi: Jasprit Bumrah, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul made a comeback in 50-over format as Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday named India’s 17-member travelling squad for the upcoming Asia Cup squad, starting August 30.

While KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, both middle-order batters rehabilitating from a thigh and a back injury respectively at the National Cricket Academy, have been declared fit for the Asia Cup, Jasprit Bumrah is returning to ODI cricket after a gap of more than a year having proved his fitness in the ongoing T20I series against Ireland. Tilak Varma and Prasidh Krishna also found a place in the squad, with Sanju Samson as the back-up player.

“Shreyas Iyer is completely fit, KL Rahul is having a niggle, That is why Sanju is travelling. We expect him to be fit, he is well on track. If not at the start of Asia Cup, may be by the second or the third game,” chief selector Ajit Agarkar said after the selection committee meeting in Delhi.

On Yuzvendra Chahal, who is missing from squad, Agarkar said: “You can’t fit in two wrist spinners and at the moment Kuldeep Yadav is ahead of him.”

Squad: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, and Sanju Samson (back up).

The first match in the Asia Cup will be played between Pakistan and Nepal in Multan. India will play all their matches in Sri Lanka, beginning with the game against arch-rivals Pakistan on September 2 in Kandy. While a total of 13 matches will be played, the final is scheduled for September 17 in Colombo.