Abhishek, Sooryavanshi Named in India A Squad For Rising Stars Asia Cup; Tilak To Lead

New Delhi: India opener Abhishek Sharma and teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi were on Monday named in a strong 15-member India A squad for the ACC Men's Rising Stars Asia Cup to be held in Doha from November 19 to 29. Tilak Varma will lead the side with Rajat Patidar his deputy, the BCCI announced in a press release.

The squad also features wicketkeeper-batters Prabhsimran Singh and Kumar Kushagra, along with Rinku Singh, Suryansh Shedge, and Shahbaz Ahmed.

All-rounders Vipraj Nigam, Harsh Dubey and Tanush Kotian have also been included, while the pace attack comprises Harshit Rana, Prince Yadav and Arshad Khan.

India A have been placed in Group B alongside Pakistan A, Nepal and the United Arab Emirates, while Group A comprises Bangladesh A, Sri Lanka A, Afghanistan A and Hong Kong, China.

India A will open their campaign against Nepal on November 20 before taking on Pakistan A on November 22. Their final group-stage fixture will be against the UAE on November 24.

All three matches will be played in Doha, with the first two scheduled at the West End Park International Stadium and the UAE fixture at the University of Doha for Science and Technology.

The top two teams from each group will qualify for the semifinals, scheduled for November 26 and 27, while the final will be played on November 29.

Squad: Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Tilak Varma (c), Rajat Patidar (vc), Rinku Singh, Kumar Kushagra (wk), Suryansh Shedge, Shahbaz Ahmed, Vipraj Nigam, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Harshit Rana, Prince Yadav, Arshad Khan.