India A Squad for Rising Star Asia Cup 2025: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the India A squad for the upcoming Rising Stars Asia Cup 2025. Jitesh Sharma has been named captain, while young sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi and IPL star Priyansh Arya have been named in the squad. The tournament will be played in Doha, Qatar, from November 14 to 23.
India has been placed in Group B for the Rising Star Asia Cup 2025. This group includes India, Oman, UAE, and Pakistan. Pakistan A and India A will face each other on November 16. Whereas Group A includes teams from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Hong Kong.
The BCCI has named wicketkeeper-batsman Jitesh Sharma as the captain of the Indian team for the Rising Star Asia Cup. Naman Dheer will be India's vice-captain for the tournament. Young players like Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Priyansh Arya have also been selected for the squad. Explosive batsman Ashutosh Sharma is also part of the squad.
Jitesh Sharma, who is currently playing a five-match T20 series with the Indian team in Australia. He has also been a part of the title-winning Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) team and captained them. Jitesh recently led India to victory in the third T20I against Australia with an unbeaten 22. His experience and leadership are expected to be a significant asset to the younger players.
14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi is the youngest player in the tournament. He became the youngest centurion in T20 cricket with a historic 101 for Rajasthan Royals in this year's IPL. He also recently scored a century in the Under-19 Test against Australia A. Priyansh Arya, who has been a standout for Punjab Kings, also scored a century in the unofficial India A vs Australia A ODI in September. His strong performance has earned him a place in the squad.
History of this Tournament
This tournament was previously known as the India Emerging Cup, which was primarily an under-23 tournament. It has also been called the Emerging Teams Asia Cup, but now many countries, including India, have included a mix of young and senior players in it to maintain a balance of talent and experience. So far, six editions of this tournament have been held. In the last six editions, India has won the title only once, in the first edition in 2013. India defeated Pakistan then. After this, Sri Lanka won the title in 2017 and 2018. Pakistan won the title in 2019 and 2023, while Afghanistan won the title in 2024.
India A’s squad for Rising Stars Asia Cup: Priyansh Arya, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Nehal Wadhera, Naman Dhir (VC), Suryansh Shedge, Jitesh Sharma (C) (WK), Ramandeep Singh, Harsh Dubey, Ashutosh Sharma, Yash Thakur, Gurjapneet Singh, Vijay Kumar Vyshak, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Abhisek Porel (WK), Suyash Sharma.
Stand-by Players: Gurnoor Singh Brar, Kumar Kushagra, Tanush Kotian, Sameer Rizvi, Shaik Rasheed.
India A Schedule for Rising Stars Asia Cup
November 14: India A Avs UAE A
November 16: India A vs Pakistan A
November 18: India A vs Oman
November 21: Semi-final 1
November 21: Semi-final 2
November 23: Final
