Xtra Time Web Desk: India U-19 cricket team is set to kick off ACC U19 Asia Cup campaign against Afghanistan in Dubai on Friday, December 8. The Indian team will be led by Uday Saharan. The 15-member squad also has Musheer Khan, brother of Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan. 18-year-old Musheer has already played three first-class matches for Mumbai. He has done exceptionally well in the recently concluded quadrangular series involving India A U19 , India B U19, England U19 and Bangladesh U19 sides.
Also, in the squad for U19 Asia Cup is 17-year-old Rudra Mayur Patel, who is the top run-getter in the quadrangular series. Rudra Patel, in fact, has scored 192 runs more than any other batter in the competition, having amassed 497 runs in 6 innings at an average of 124.25 and strike rate of 118.61.
Patel is joined in the squad by left-arm spinner Saumy Kumar Pandey, who is the highest wicket-taker in the quadrangular series with 11 wickets in 6 outings. Pandey, in fact, has been named vice-captain for the series.
Ansh Gosai, the second-highest run-getter in the quadrangular series, has been named as a traveling standby while there is no place in the 15-man squad for P Vignesh, the joint second-highest wicket-taker. Vignesh, however, has been named as a reserve player.
The highly anticipated clash between India and Pakistan is scheduled for December 10 in the eight-team competition. The participating teams are divided into two groups, with India and Pakistan placed in Pool A alongside Afghanistan and Nepal. Pool B consists of Bangladesh, Japan, Sri Lanka, and the host nation, UAE.
According to the U-19 Asia Cup format, only two teams from each pool will advance to the semi-finals, which are scheduled for December 15. The grand finale is set to take place on December 17.
India secured the title in the last edition of the tournament held in 2021, defeating Sri Lanka in the final. The victory marked India’s eighth title in the U-19 Asia Cup, and the squad featured notable names from the Indian Premier League (IPL) such as Yash Dhull, Raj Bawa, and Rajvardhan Hangarekar.
Here is the India U19 squad for Asia Cup:
Uday Saharan (captain), Saumy Kumar Pandey (vice-captain), Arshin Kulkarni, Adarsh Singh, Rudra Mayur Patel, Sachin Dhas, Priyanshu Moliya, Musheer Khan, Dhanush Gowda, Avinash Rao (wk), M Abhishek, Innesh Mahajan (wk), Aardhya Shukla, Raj Limbani, Naman Tiwari.