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Fringe India players eye Asia Cup as ticket to T20 World Cup

Rohit Sharma said a few days ago that 80-90% of the squad is settled. Even though the trend post Covid is to carry 18 players, including three stand-byes, Rohit was probably talking about the final 15 who will be part of the World Cup team. The Indian team has quite a few T20s scheduled in the next couple of months, starting with the Asia Cup, and it’s the perfect platform for the fringe players to make an impression. If there are no last-minute injuries, the certainties for the World Cup are Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvenshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah. That leaves four spots and there are about nine contenders, eight being part of the Asia Cup touring party (including stand-byes). Sanju Samson is not part of the team, but he will come into the discussion later. TOI takes a look at the fringe players who will be looking to make a mark in Asia Cup and stake a claim for the World Cup. TOI looks at fringe players who are eager to make an impact in Asia Cup and make the cut for T20 World Cup.

Asia Cup 2022: Default ‘captain’ Rahul Dravid’s test begins in his absence

With multiple captains this year, head coach had to attend selection meetings, take all tough calls and scramble to put together a settled combination for the Asia Cup in UAE and T20 World Cup in Australia.DUBAI: For a man who emphasizes on ‘process’ more than results, Rahul Dravid’s journey as Team India’s head coach, leading to the T20 World Cup, has been put to test. When he took over from Ravi Shastri after the T20 World Cup debacle, India aimed at playing a specific style of cricket, besides having a stable core for the playing XI. Even as Rohit Sharma assumed all-format captaincy by March, Dravid remained the captain of the ship all through. Unavailability of top players prompted India to field seven captains across formats in the last eight months. For a man who has forever harped on the need for consistency, Dravid’s journey as Team India coach has ironically been a topsy turvy one. Unlike the preceding team management, when then captain Virat Kohli called the shots with Shastri majorly working on executing the plans and managing the players, Dravid has been in the driver’s seat by default. From attending selection meetings to managing the workload of his marquee players, ‘the wall’ of Indian cricket has been enduring the roughest of environments. The results in bilateral T20I cricket point at India’s supremacy in the format. Yet, one can’t dismiss the underlying anxiety over the team composition as the T20 World Cup draws closer. Besides the regular overwhelming hype around the India-Pakistan matches, the Asia Cup here is significant for Team India to finally settle down with a set of players.

"Yaar Main Soch Raha Hu Aapki Tarah Ek Haath Se Chhakke Lagaau": Shaheen Afridi's Hilarious Meeting With Rishabh Pant

India and Pakistan will be squaring off on August 28 at the Dubai International Stadium. Both the sides are currently gearing up for the high-octane clash, which will be the first match between them since the T20 World Cup last year. While India's Jasprit Bumrah is set to miss the entire tournament, Pakistan also suffered a big blow before their Asia Cup campaign kicks off as the side will see its ace bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi missing the continental event.

Watch: Hong Kong Players Dance To 'Kaala Chashma' After Asia Cup Qualification

Hong Kong qualified for Asia Cup 2022 with a comprehensive eight-wicket win over the United Arab Emirates earlier this week. Hong Kong will join seven-time champions India and Pakistan in Group A. They will face India on August 31 and Pakistan on September 2. After the match, the Hong Kong players could be seen dancing to the hit song 'Kala Chashma' from the movie 'Baar Baar Dekho'. Wicketkeeper-batter Zeeshan Ali shared the video, which has gone viral on social media.

Asia Cup 2022, Group B Match, Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan: When And Where To Watch Live Telecast, Live Streaming

Asia Cup 2022 will get underway on Saturday evening with the clash between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan at the Dubai International Stadium. Both Mohammad Nabi and Dasun Shanaka would hope for their sides to show a spirited display and get off to a winning start in the tournament. Sri Lanka and Afghanistan are placed in Group B alongside Bangladesh. In the T20 World Cup that was played last year in the UAE, teams batting second had a huge advantage because of the dew so it needs to be seen whether the history repeats itself in the Asia Cup. Sri Lanka and Afghanistan have played just one T20I against each other in which, Sri Lanka emerged triumphant.

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Fringe India players eye Asia Cup as ticket to T20 World Cup

Asia Cup 2022: Default ‘captain’ Rahul Dravid’s test begins in his absence

"Yaar Main Soch Raha Hu Aapki Tarah Ek Haath Se Chhakke Lagaau": Shaheen Afridi's Hilarious Meeting With Rishabh Pant

Watch: Hong Kong Players Dance To 'Kaala Chashma' After Asia Cup Qualification

Asia Cup 2022, Group B Match, Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan: When And Where To Watch Live Telecast, Live Streaming

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Rare India-Pakistan meeting in Asia Cup 'exciting' for Rahul