The BCCI selection committee, headed by Ajit Agarkar, is likely to pick a 17-member squad for the upcoming Asia Cup in order to examine all possible options ahead of the ODI World Cup, starting October 5.
According to a PTI report, head coach Rahul Dravid will also be present in the selection meeting, scheduled for Monday (August 21) morning in Delhi.
It is worth mentioning here that unlike Cricket Australia, where chief coach is a part of the national selection panel), neither the coach nor the captain has a say on selection matters in India.
Notably, Ravi Shastri and Anil Kumble were not part of selection meetings during their tenure as India head coach.
It is still not confirmed whether both Dravid and skipper Rohit Sharma will attend the meeting physically or join through video conference.
Since the Indian team is still sweating over the fitness of KL Rahul (thigh) and Shreyas Iyer (lower back), the selectors might opt for safer options that give them a chance to check all available players in the Asia Cup fixtures.
The Asian Cricket Council has allowed the teams to pick 17-member squads for Asia Cup. Consequently, Pakistan and Bangladesh have named 17-member squads.
"There is a possibility of picking the provisional 15-member squad for the World Cup which needs to be submitted by September 5 but one could make changes as the deadline for final squad is September 27," a BCCI source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
"For Asia Cup, a couple of more players could be picked," he added.
As per the report, promising left-hander Tilak Varma will be discussed at the meeting. However, it is not sure if he could find a place in final 15 in case both Iyer and Rahul are deemed fit.
The same goes for Sanju Samson, who could miss out on a final 15 berth as Suryakumar Yadav is considered a better finisher and could take the additional batter's spot if Rahul and Iyer are available for selection.
India's likely 17-member squad (including provisional 15 for Sept 5 deadline):
Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (wk, subject to fitness), Shreyas Iyer (subject to fitness), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Ishan Kishan (2nd wk), Akshar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Yuzvendra Chahal/R Ashwin.
(With PTI Inputs)
