'The standby players will not be travelling with the main squad to Dubai'
Breaking from tradition, the Board of Control for Cricket in India has decided against sending standby players to Dubai for the Asia Cup 2025, signalling full faith in its trimmed 15-member squad led by Suryakumar Yadav.
As a result, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag, and Dhruv Jurel will stay back in India and only be called upon if required.
When asked if any of the standby players would accompany the team as net bowlers or backups, a senior BCCI official told PTI, 'No, the standby players will not be travelling with the main squad to Dubai.'
The move highlights the management's preference for a leaner travelling party, with replacements likely to be flown in only if needed.
India's batting unit includes Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson, who can all open the innings. Jaiswal will only be drafted in if one of them is ruled out due to injury. Similarly, Prasidh Krishna could only come into contention if there is an issue with Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, or Harshit Rana.
India named just 15 players in their squad, despite being permitted to select up to 17 for the tournament.
Led by Suryakumar Yadav, the 15-member squad will assemble directly in Dubai on September 4, ahead of the September 9 tournament opener. In a departure from usual practice, players will not gather in Mumbai first but instead fly straight from their respective cities.
'All the players will arrive in Dubai by September 4 evening and the first nets session will be held on September 5 at the ICC Academy,' the BCCI official said on condition of anonymity. 'Factoring in the logistical convenience, the players will be allowed to fly in to Dubai from their respective cities.'
'Obviously, a few will travel from Mumbai but to ask some of the others to first come to Mumbai and then fly to Dubai doesn't make sense. In any case, Dubai is a short-duration flight compared to other international flights.'
India begin their Asia Cup campaign against hosts UAE on September 10, before facing Pakistan on September 14 and Oman on September 19. The Super Four stage will follow after the group matches.
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