The BCCI’s selection committee is set to announce the Indian cricket team’s squad for the Asia Cup next week. While some players like Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, and Abhishek Sharma seem to be certain picks, there are doubts surrounding a few top players. One major question is whether or not Test captain Shubman Gill will make the squad. He was not selected by the BCCI in the last couple of T20I series that India played. However, following his strong performances in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, his chances have improved.
Amidst all this, former India star Mohammad Kaif has named his version of the Indian squad and playing XI.
The veteran of 13 Tests and 125 ODIs picked Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma as the openers in his team. Tilak Varma slots in at No. 3, followed by Suryakumar Yadav. In Kaif’s lineup, Axar Patel is named vice-captain of the Asia Cup side.
Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, and Varun Chakaravarthy round out Kaif’s playing XI.
“There is a tough fight for the backup opener spot between Gill and Jaiswal. I think, given the form he showed in England, Gill would be preferred. The backup keeper would be Jitesh Sharma, based on how he has performed for RCB. I think Mohammed Siraj should also be in the squad,” Kaif said on his YouTube channel.
Interistingly, Rinku Singh finds no place in Kaif’s squad.
Rinku became the toast of the nation a few years back when he hit five consecutive sixes off a Yash Dayal over to win an IPL game for Kolkata Knight Riders and had since been looked upon as a designated finisher in the Indian team.
However Rinku’s career graph has seen a bit a decline since he failed to make it to the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup (he was on stand by).
A low-key 2024 IPL, where he faced only 113 balls, and a similar 2025 season (134 balls) hinted at a reduced role.
Interestingly, in 2024, it was Gambhir who was the mentor and chief strategist of KKR.
The manner in which the erstwhile think-tank chief of KKR used Rinku was indicative that the Aligarh southpaw’s role in his scheme of things was very limited.
Going by the fight for each batting slot, one can’t say with a degree of certainty that Rinku is an automatic choice going into the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka early next year.
But if only Asia Cup T20 is factored in at the moment, Rinku’s position looks a bit untenable at the moment.
With PTI inputs