5 Indian Players Who Deserved to be in the Asia Cup 2023 Squad but Missed Out

On 21 August 2023, the Indian Cricket Board announced an 18-member squad for the upcoming Asia Cup. The tournament is going to begin on 30 August while the Men in Blue will begin their campaign on 2 September against their arch-rivals Pakistan. However, Rohit Sharma will lead the team while Hardik Pandya will be his deputy.    

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Tilak Varma earned a maiden ODI call-up while Sanju Samson got included as a backup player. Both KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer made a comeback in the squad after a long injury setback. But, fans were left surprised with some decisions as some players like Yuzvendra Chahal got dropped from the squad.  

Five Indian Players who Missed out on Asia Cup 2023 Squad:

5. Yuzvendra Chahal:

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Yuzvendra Chahal (Image Source: Twitter)

This leg spinner was a part of the ODI squad that travelled to West Indies recently for a three-match ODI series. Unfortunately, Yuzvendra Chahal did not play a single game as India went with Kuldeep Yadav ahead of him. However, he played all five T20Is against the Windies. He last played an ODI in January 2023.

Now, the Men in Blue again went with Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav as spinning options and dropped him from the Asia Cup squad. It even showed that in the race of getting a place for the upcoming ODI World Cup squad, Chahal might be lagging down the pecking order. Speaking of his ODI career so far, he has taken 121 wickets in 72 matches, at an economy of 5.26   

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4. Shikhar Dhawan:

Shikhar Dhawan (Image Source: Twitter)

This veteran opening batter has been a pillar of Indian cricket for a long time at the top order along with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. But, in December 2022, he played his last ODI. After that, Shikhar Dhawan has been neglected so far in any format of the game. However, it did not change when the Asia Cup squad also got announced. Dhawan has scored 6793 runs in 167 matches, including 17 centuries and 39 fifties. Earlier, he was reported to be the skipper of Team India for the upcoming Asian Games. 

But, he failed to get a place there also as Ruturaj Gaikwad was named the captain. Despite having an impressive IPL 2023, he failed to make a comeback and the chief selector Ajit Agarakar also opened up about it while speaking to reporters. He said: “Shikhar Dhawan has been terrific for India, but currently Rohit Sharma, Gill, and Kishan are our 3 preferred openers. Shubman Gill, Ishaan Kishan, and Shikhar Dhawan have done exceptionally well for India, but unfortunately, it is not possible to include all of them in the team.”  

3. Ravichandran Ashwin:

Ravichandran Ashwin (Image Source: Twitter)

This veteran off-spinner is the number one-ranked bowler in the longest format of the game. In that format, he has become a force to reckon with with his exception varieties. But, in both the white ball formats, it’s been a while since fans have seen him action in a consistent manner. Ravichandran Ashwin last played an ODI in January 2022 and a T20I in November 2022.  

So, it was most likely to see him getting excluded from the squad and that happened only. India have shown faith in Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, and  Axar Patel instead of him. Speaking of his ODI career, he has taken 151 wickets in 113 games, at an economy of 4.94. Ashwin has taken just one four-fer so far.  

2. Yashasvi Jaiswal:

Yashasvi Jaiswal (Image Source: Twitter)

This young man became a crowd favourite due to his exceptional performances with the bat for Rajasthan Royals (RR) in IPL 2023. In that season, Yashasvi Jaiswal scored 625 runs in 14 matches, including five fifties and one century. He also smashed the fastest IPL fifty in just 13 balls. Recently, he also made a remarkable Test debut against the Windies. 

He scored a century on his debut. Jaiswal made his T20I debut in West Indies and now, he is playing in the T20I series in Ireland. In five T20Is, he has one fifty to his name. He is yet to make his ODI debut but seeing such potential, fans were hoping to see him getting a place in the Asia Cup squad. However, selectors decided not to include him.    

1. Arshdeep Singh:

Arshdeep Singh (Image Source: Twitter)

This young left-arm pacer has missed a place in the Asia Cup squad. India have shown faith in Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Shardul Thakur, and Prasidh Krishna ahead of him. Arshdeep Singh is currently in Ireland, playing in the three-match T20I series. He last played an ODI in November 2022.

In that debut series, he failed to pick up a single wicket despite bowling in two innings. After that, he has not got any chance to play in any ODI series. Still, being a left-arm pacer which is a rare commodity in the Indian Cricket circuit, fans were hoping to see him getting a place in the squad. But, the selectors have also decided to keep him out of the squad.

Also Check: Top 5 Records Held by India in Asia Cup History