NEW DELHI: An unexpected moment unfolded during India's Asia Cup squad announcement press conference in Mumbai on Tuesday, when chief selector Ajit Agarkar was caught off guard after being stopped from responding to a question about Pakistan.
Just as Agarkar was about to respond, a BCCI representative at the venue stepped in, signaling him to refrain from commenting. The incident drew attention, highlighting the political unrest tied to India's upcoming clash against Pakistan.
India are scheduled to face Pakistan on September 14 in Dubai, marking the first clash between the two sides since the Pahalgam terror attack in April this year.
The arch-rivals could potentially meet up to three times in the tournament, with another showdown likely in the Super 4 stage on September 21, and possibly again in the final after the group phase.
In terms of the squad, India named Test captain Shubman Gill as vice-captain of the T20 side, while the return of premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah further strengthened the 15-member lineup for the showpiece event.
Bumrah's availability for the continental tournament had been in doubt, given its close proximity to the home Test series against the West Indies in October. However, the selectors have included him, making this his first T20 assignment since last year's World Cup.
"As we go along, how he is feeling, when we require him as a team, which is probably the most important thing and along with the physios and the trainers, those things are monitored. We hope that he is available more often than not," Agarkar said.
Squad: Surya Kumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson (wk), Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh
Stand-by players: Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel
