Ayush Badoni has replaced Rajat Patidar in India A’s squad for the ACC Men’s Rising Stars Asia Cup, following the selection update on November 8. Rinku Singh has been named vice-captain, while Tilak Varma continues as captain for the tournament in Doha, Qatar.
The selection update follows Patidar’s request not to be considered for 50-over selection while managing existing injuries. BCCI’s Men’s Selection Committee withdrew him from the tournament squad and named Badoni in his place. No return date has been announced for Patidar.
The revised leadership also changes the arrangement announced on 2 November. In that original squad, BCCI listed Tilak as captain and Patidar as vice-captain. Rinku now takes the vice-captaincy in the updated group, with Badoni filling the vacant player place.
Recent Ranji form
Badoni had scored 559 runs in four Ranji Trophy games before this selection change, including two double-hundreds.
Patidar’s recent appearances have also included domestic and India A cricket. Cricbuzz reported that he captained Madhya Pradesh in three first-leg Ranji games and scored centuries against Puducherry and Bihar. Before those games, he had made two half-centuries in three one-day matches against Australia A in Puducherry, according to the same report.
India A’s route through the tournament
BCCI’s original announcement schedules the competition from 19 to 29 November 2026. India A are in Group B with Nepal, the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan A. The other group consists of Bangladesh A, Sri Lanka A, Afghanistan A and Hong Kong, China.
India A’s first scheduled group game is against Nepal on 20 November at West End Park International Stadium. They are due to face Pakistan A at the same ground on 22 November, followed by the United Arab Emirates on 24 November at University of Doha for Science & Technology.
The top two teams from each group qualify for the semi-finals, scheduled for 26 and 27 November. The final is set for 29 November. These dates come from BCCI’s tournament announcement, alongside the group allocation and India A’s fixtures.
The revised squad
The 15-player squad lists Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Prabhsimran Singh, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Kumar Kushagra, Suryansh Shedge, Shahbaz Ahmed, Vipraj Nigam, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Harshit Rana, Prince Yadav, Arshad Khan and Ayush Badoni. Prabhsimran and Kushagra are the listed wicketkeepers; Tilak and Rinku hold the captaincy and vice-captaincy respectively.