'A left-hander looks very promising': Ajit Agarkar on Tilak Varma's inclusion in India's Asia Cup squad

On Monday afternoon (August 21), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revealed India's 17-man squad for the forthcoming Asia Cup 2023 edition, to be jointly hosted by Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee picked a strong squad which sees the return of KL Rahul andShreyas Iyer whereas pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna have alsomade an ODI comeback after a lengthy injury layoff. The duo marked their international returnduring the ongoing Ireland T20I series opener.

The squad comprises 17 players whereas Sanju Samson has been named as a backup. The main squad also includes Tilak Varma, who is yet to make his debut in the ODI format. Varma, after a stellar run in IPL 2023 for Mumbai Indians (MI), got his maiden international cap during the India-West Indies T20Is, in West Indies and Florida. The left-hander impressed with scores of 39, 51, 49*, 7*, 27.

Former India pacer Agarkar, who is spearheading the BCCI selection committee, opined on Varma's inclusion and said after the squad announcement, "In West Indies, we saw some real promise in terms of not just performances but the temperament."

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He added, "And it gives us an opportunity to take him with the team, give him some more exposure; a left-hander again, looks very promising. So fortunately we can take 17 here, it'll be 15 at the World Cup. So when the time comes we'll take that decision, but at the moment it at least gives the coach and captain an opportunity to have him with the squad."

Varma is currently part of the Bumrah-led Indian squad for the ongoing three T20Is versus Ireland in Dublin. So far, he hasn't managed to do anything significant in the two games but will aim for a big score in the final T20I with India already having an unassailable 2-0 lead.

Varma's inclusion has strengthened India's batting line-up. Now, the national sidenot only have another left-handerfor the middle and lower order but the 20-year-old can also bowl a bit. It will be interesting to see if he makes his ODI debut in the upcoming continental tournament, where India kick off their campaign versus arch-rivals Pakistan on September 2 in Pallekele.

India are placed in Group A along with Babar Azam-led Men in Green and Nepal.

India's squad for Asia Cup 2023

Rohit Sharma (C), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammad Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Prasidh Krishna

Reserves: Sanju Samson

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