Harshit Rana picked in India A squad for Rising Stars Asia Cup

Harshit Rana will return to action during the Rising Stars Asia Cup 50-over tournament having been picked in a star-studded India A side. The 24-year-old fast bowler has not played any cricket since July when he was with the senior team on their tour of England.

Several T20 specialists including Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Rinku Singh and Prabhsimran Singh are part of the squad that will travel to Doha to take part in the competition which starts on November 19. Tilak Varma, who recently helped India to a 3-2 T20I series victory over New Zealand, will be captaining the 'A' team and back-to-back IPL winning captain Rajat Patidar has been named his deputy.

Rana will lead a fast-bowling attack which also includes Prince Yadav and allrounder Suryansh Shedge. He also extends the batting line-up with his hitting ability at No. 8 and head coach Gautam Gambhir has spoken about the importance of having a player with that profile at the 2027 ODI World Cup in Southern Africa next October.

Rana was due to play his first World Cup, albeit in the T20 format, earlier this year but a knee injury pushed him into the sidelines. He also missed the IPL that followed. After five months on the mend, Rana joined the team on their tour of Ireland and England in June and July and reprised the ability that made him stand out in the first place: making things happen. He has gone wicketless only four times in 28 white-ball games for India. Having been picked subject to fitness clearance for the T20Is against Afghanistan in September, Rana suffered a separate, unspecified injury while at the BCCI's centre for excellence in Bengaluru.

The board appears to be keen to test how their T20 stars will adapt to the longer white-ball format. Sooryavanshi and Abhishek are not in the running for the ODI team but are batters who possess incredibly high ceilings. Sooryavanshi has played only 13 List A games but already has a high score of 190. Abhishek has a little more experience (69 matches).

India A's spin attack at the Rising Stars Asia Cup will comprise a mix of T20 and first-class specialists such as Delhi Capitals legspinner Vipraj Nigam, Vidarbha left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey, who picked up 9 for 53 in the Ranji Trophy on Monday, and Mumbai offspinner and their leading wicket-taker in 2026-27 Tanush Kotian.

India A are placed in Group B alongside the United Arab Emirates, Nepal, and Pakistan A. Group A comprises Bangladesh A, Sri Lanka A, Afghanistan A and Hong Kong, China. The top two teams from each group will advance to the Rising Stars Asia Cup semi-finals, scheduled for November 26 and 27. The final will take place on November 29. India A face Pakistan A on November 22.

Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Tilak Varma (capt), Rajat Patidar (vice-capt), Rinku Singh, Kumar Kushagra (WK), Suryansh Shedge, Shahbaz Ahmed, Vipraj Nigam, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Harshit Rana, Prince Yadav, Arshad Khan