10 Players who have been picked in India’s T20 Asia Cup squad for the first time

India announced their squad for the T20 Asia Cup on Tuesday, August 19. Shubman Gill’s return as the vice-captain was the biggest headline as the Indian team brought the Test skipper back in the squad as an opening option. 

The Asia Cup acts as a dress rehearsal for the T20 World Cup 2026, with Asian teams looking to put their best foot forward in the regional tournament, which gets underway on September 9. 

There have been many players who have made their way to the T20 Asia Cup squad for the first time and are in line to play the tournament. As many as 10 players from the 15-member main squad are the ones who have not previously played the T20 format of the regional tournament, with vice-captain Gill being among those.

Apart from Gill, the others who have been picked for the first time in the T20 format of the tournament are Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson (WK), Harshit Rana and Rinku Singh.

Five players who have played the T20 Asia Cup before

There are only five players from the current squad who have featured in the T20 format of the tournament. Current T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya and Arshdeep Singh were part of the Indian team for the 2022 Asia Cup. Notably, Jasprit Bumrah was part of the 2016 edition of the T20 Asia Cup.

The Asia Cup will be played from September 9 onwards. India are placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, UAE and Oman. 

India squad for Asia Cup 2025: Surya Kumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson (WK), Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh

Stand-bys for Asia Cup: Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal.