3 clear indications from Team India's men's squad for the Asian Games 2023
The BCCI recently announced Team India's squads (both men's and women's) for the cricket competition of the Asian Games 2023, which will be held from September 28 to October 8.
Ruturaj Gaikwad will lead the Men in Blue in the Asian Games, with the squad featuring recent Test debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal apart from cult heroes like Rinku Singh and Shivam Dube.
Team India men's squad for the Asian Games 2023: Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), 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).
While there has been no official communication from the selectors regarding their thinking, there are a few conclusions we can draw from the contingent they have named for the tournament.
Here are three clear indications from India's men's squad for the Asian Games 2023.
#3 Certain players are clearly not in the mix for the 2023 World Cup
The men's cricket competition of the Asian Games 2023 will be held from September 28 to October 8. The World Cup, meanwhile, is scheduled to commence on October 5.
It's safe to assume, therefore, that certain players who have been picked in the Asian Games squad are not in contention to play for India in the quadrennial event.
Arshdeep Singh appears to be behind Jaydev Unadkat in the pecking order, while Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad might not be in consideration to be the backup opener to Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. The inclusions of Washington Sundar and Ravi Bishnoi are also telling.
This gives us a fairly clear understanding of the selectors' thoughts in the lead-up to the World Cup, with these players presumably not in the mix.
#2 The squad, including the standbys, have all been fast-tracked into the national setup
India could've gone down a tried-and-tested route by picking the likes of Shikhar Dhawan, Ravichandran Ashwin and Bhuvneshwar Kumar if they wanted to give themselves a better shot at the prize. However, they've opted to pick a young squad for the competition, with an emphasis on blooding the next generation.
Rahul Tripathi is the senior-most player in the squad, which features quite a few uncapped players. Even those who have turned out for the Men in Blue before haven't established themselves at the international level.
The standbys paint a clear picture as well. Apart from Deepak Hooda and Venkatesh Iyer, who have made their international debuts, the reserve players are those who have been fast-tracked into the national setup - Sai Kishore, Sai Sudharsan and Yash Thakur.
This is a welcome decision by the Indian selectors, who seem intent on building a team for the future.
#1 We could see a lot more of Ruturaj Gaikwad on the international stage
Ruturaj Gaikwad has never even captained in the Indian Premier League (IPL) before, but he will lead the national side in the Asian Games 2023. The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) man has played only 10 matches for India across formats so far.
Gaikwad has been impressive as a skipper in domestic cricket, both for Maharashtra and in the Maharashtra Premier League (MPL). He has shown a willingness to support the needs of the team as his personal cost, bringing the best out of the players at his disposal. The 26-year-old's batting returns have also increased while at the helm.
Gaikwad hasn't been able to become an Indian regular so far, but that could all change after the Asian Games. The selectors clearly have an eye on him for the long run.