Team India vice-captain KL Rahul is expected to make his long-awaited comeback into the Men in Blue squad along with fast-bowler Deepak Chahar for the Asia Cup 2022 on August 8, when the squad for the marquee tournament will be selected. The Asia Cup is set to be played in the T20 format which will be played in Dubai and Sharjah starting from August 27 to September 11. (Loop continues: Virat Kohli TROLLED again after yet another failure in IND vs ENG 2nd ODI)


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KL Rahul was set to make a comeback for the Zimbabwe ODI-series but he tested positive for COVID-19 which delayed his return to international cricket. Before that, the right-handed opener was struggling with an injury and underwent a surgery in order to recover. (Asia Cup 2022 Schedule: India vs Pakistan clash on THIS date, check all matches list here)


The selection committee have a big task on their shoulders as in KL Rahul's absence, Rishabh Pant and Suryakumar Yadav, both have performed well opening the batting with Rohit Sharma in the last 6 T20I matches.


"KL Rahul doesn't need to prove anything. He is a class player. Whenever he plays T20, it is always as a specialist opener and it will continue like that only. Surya and Pant are set to play as middle-order batters for the team going forward," a BCCI source told PTI, as per TOI.



Notably, the Asia Cup squad of India will give a fair example of what team will look like in the T20 World Cup later this year. India have tried a lot of new combinations and will not show any shyness in order to 'experiment' before the first clash in the Asia Cup against Pakistan on October 23.


Deepak Chahar will make a comeback in the Zimbabwe ODI-series and is likely to feature in the Asia Cup squad as well. 


"Deepak was one of India's consistent T20 bowlers before his injury. He deserves a fair chance and also we need a like-for-like back-up for Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Also now that he is coming back, he would need to play a lot of games to get his rhythm back," the source added.


Harshal Patel was doing fine in Deepak's absence but he is out with a rib-cage injury and his spot in the squad is subject to fitness.


The biggest issue


Talking about all the players is one thing and thinking about Virat Kohli's form is one. The no. 3 batter for India for the past 10 years is set to continue in the same rhythm but his form is a big worry for everyone. It will be difficult to leave a player like Virat Kohli out of the squad for the World Cup but his recent form will still be a big question to his selection.