Asia Cup 2023 India squad: KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer return in 17-member team

NEW DELHI: The BCCI declared India's 17-member ODI squad for the Asia Cup on Monday, as batsmen KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer made a comeback from injury, while Jasprit Bumrah also made a comeback to the 50-over format after proving his fitness in the ongoing T20I series in Ireland, where he is leading the Indian team.

The squad, which also reflects the make-up of the Indian team for the ODI World Cup later this year, was announced after the selection committee meeting headed by the chief selector Ajit Agarkar in Delhi.
Agarkar and India captain Rohit Sharma then officially announced the team, followed by a press conference.
Tilak Varma and Prasidh Krishna also found a place in the squad, with Sanju Samson as the back-up player.
Tilak Varma (BCCI Photo)
It was both good and bad news for KL Rahul, who made a return to India's 17-member ODI squad for the Asia Cup, but is carrying a 'niggle' and is not yet fully fit to reclaim his place in the playing XI.
While Rahul recovered from a thigh injury, the other big name that made a comeback to India colours is Iyer, who overcame a back injury. But while Iyer has returned fully fit, Rahul is carrying a different injury, described as a 'niggle' by Agarkar.
"It is not the original injury. There is a niggle. That is why Sanju is travelling (to Sri Lanka). We are expecting Rahul to be fit. If not the start of Asia cup may be by the second or the third game. Shreyas Iyer is fully fit," said chief selector Agarkar.

The Asia Cup begins on August 30 with the match between Pakistan and Nepal in Multan.
India will play all their matches in Sri Lanka, beginning with the game against arch-rivals Pakistan on September 2 in Kandy.
While India, Pakistan and Nepal are part of Group A, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan form the more competitive Group B. The top two teams from each of the group will progress to the 'Super 4' stage.
In total, the tournament will have 13 matches, with four to be hosted by Pakistan and nine in Sri Lanka.
The final is scheduled for September 17 in Colombo.

: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, Ishan Kishan, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Prasidh Krishna
Full schedule:
Group stage:
August 30: Pakistan vs Nepal, Multan
August 31: Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka, Kandy
September 2: India vs Pakistan, Kandy
September 3: Bangladesh vs Afghanistan, Lahore
September 4: India vs Nepal, Kandy
September 5: Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan, Lahore
Super 4s stage:
September 6: A1 vs B2, Lahore
September 9: B1 vs B2, Colombo
September 10: A1 vs A2, Colombo
September 12: A2 vs B1, Colombo
September 14: A1 vs B1, Colombo
September 15: A2 vs B2, Colombo
September 17: Final, Colombo