Bengaluru, August 30 – Indian Test captain and T20 vice-captain Shubman Gill has arrived at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru for a fitness assessment and preparation before departing for the upcoming Asia Cup in Dubai. Players selected for the Indian squad are scheduled to assemble in Dubai on September 4, ahead of the tournament opener against hosts United Arab Emirates on September 9.
Gill had missed the Duleep Trophy quarterfinal against the East Zone, where he was expected to lead the North Zone side, due to a bout of flu. Before traveling to Bengaluru, he had been recovering at his home in Chandigarh. It is likely that Gill will fly directly to Dubai from Bengaluru, as this time players will travel to the tournament venue from their respective locations instead of gathering in Mumbai beforehand.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Jitesh Sharma has also reported to the Centre of Excellence for pre-tournament preparations. As per agency report, key players including pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohammed Siraj, and Shardul Thakur are also expected to arrive shortly. Thakur is set to captain the West Zone side in the Duleep Trophy semifinal, while Sundar and standby player Jaiswal will continue their participation in the domestic competition before joining the Asia Cup squad.
Other players named in the Asia Cup squad are already engaged in the Duleep Trophy quarterfinals, with Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana representing the North Zone, and Kuldeep Yadav featuring for the Central Zone.
Meanwhile, the South Zone will have to name a new captain for the Duleep Trophy semifinal scheduled between September 4 and 7, as Tilak Varma has been drafted into the Asia Cup team. Kerala’s Mohammed Azharuddeen, currently the vice-captain, is being considered as a replacement, although experienced players such as R Sai Kishore, Devdutt Padikkal, or N Jagadeesan are also potential options.
In another setback, East Zone’s campaign suffered a blow when pacer Mukesh Kumar was unable to bowl in the second innings, reportedly due to an injury sustained earlier during the first innings.
