The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is expected to announce the India squad for the Asia Cup 2025 on August 19 in Mumbai. The selection meeting will be attended by India's T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav, who is currently recuperating from a sports hernia surgery at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.
Suryakumar Yadav is likely to continue as India's T20I captain, putting an end to speculations that Shubman Gill might be given the role. There had been suggestions that Gill, currently India's Test captain, could replace Yadav, but it appears the selectors are keen on maintaining the status quo.
While Shubman Gill is expected to make a comeback to the T20I squad, his place in the starting XI is not guaranteed. With the team management looking to persist with the opening pair of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma, Gill might find it difficult to break into the side. Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had a good series in England, is also likely to miss out, as selectors have reportedly told him to focus on red-ball cricket. However, some reports suggest that Jaiswal could be selected as a reserve opener.
Shreyas Iyer's return to the T20I squad also seems unlikely. He will compete with Tilak Varma for the No. 5 spot. India may also pick between Rinku Singh or Shivam Dube as a backup in the middle order. Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel are expected to be the two main all-rounders in the squad. The team could also include all-rounder Washington Sundar for extra batting depth. Samson is expected to keep wickets, with either Ishan Kishan or Dhruv Jurel as the backup option.
The Asia Cup 2025 is scheduled to be played in the T20I format from September 9 to 28 in the UAE. India will play their first match on September 10 against UAE in Dubai, followed by a match against Pakistan on September 14. India is in Group A with Pakistan, Oman, and UAE.
The likely squad includes Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Verma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana. The selection of the second specialist spinner will be between Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi. Jasprit Bumrah's inclusion will depend on his fitness clearance from the BCCI's medical team.