Ruturaj Gaikwad has been named as captain for the Asian Games 2023 as India have announced a second-string squad for the event. The Asian Games will be played in China between September 23-October 8.

The Asian Games will clash with the ODI World Cup which is scheduled to start on October 5, which is why first-choice players who are in contention for a World Cup spot have not been selected for the Games.

Gaikwad will be leading India in international cricket for the first time. Other notable players who have been around the national setup for some time include Washington Sundar, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, and Ravi Bishnoi.

Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has just made his international debut in the first Test match against West Indies, has also been named in the squad.

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Several fringe players who have performed well in the IPL and in domestic cricket have been given call-ups. Two players who have been selected for the first time in the senior India Men’s side include Rinku Singh, who had a scintillating IPL 2023, and Prabhsimran Singh who impressed in the last IPL season as well, scoring a memorable hundred against Delhi Capitals in Delhi.

The most notable absentee from the squad is Shikhar Dhawan. There were reports that Dhawan might be recalled to lead the side in the absence of the regular names, but he has not been picked, perhaps indicating that he might be in India’s plans for the ODI World Cup.

This is just the third time that cricket will be part of the Asian Games. India didn’t send their cricket teams the last two times cricket was played in the Asian Games, that is, in 2010 and 2014.

Asian Games 2023: India men’s squad

Batters

Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rahul Tripathi, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube

Wicketkeepers

Jitesh Sharma, Prabhsimran Singh

Spinners

Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Ravi Bishnoi

Fast bowlers

Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Mavi, Mukesh Kumar

Standby

Deepak Hooda, Yash Thakur, Sai Kishore, Venkatesh Iyer, Sai Sudharshan