Mumbai Indians star Tilak Varma will lead India A while Abhishek Sharma will serve as his deputy in the upcoming men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup, scheduled from October 18 to 27 in Muscat, Oman.

The 21-year-old Varma brings experience from four ODIs and 16 T20Is, while Sharma has played eight T20Is. The squad also includes leg spinner Rahul Chahar, who has six T20I and one ODI appearances for India.

India A boasts several players with IPL experience, including Prabhsimran Singh from Punjab Kings, Anuj Rawat from Royal Challengers Bangalore, Ayush Badoni from Lucknow Super Giants, Ramandeep Singh from Kolkata Knight Riders, and Nehal Wadhera from Mumbai Indians in the batting lineup.

In the bowling department, the team features Vaibhav Arora (KKR), R Sai Kishore (Gujarat Titans), Hrithik Shokeen (MI), Rasikh Salam (Delhi Capitals), and Aaqib Khan.

Placed in Group B, India A will kick off their campaign against Pakistan on October 19 at the Oman Cricket Academy Ground in Muscat.

Oman and UAE complete their group, while Group A consists of Afghanistan A, Bangladesh A, Hong Kong, and Sri Lanka A.

This will mark the first time the tournament is played in the T20 format. The previous five editions were held in the 50-over format.

India A Squad: Tilak Varma (C), Abhishek Sharma (VC), Prabhsimran Singh (WK), Nishant Sindhu, Ramandeep Singh, Nehal Wadhera, Ayush Badoni, Anuj Rawat (WK), Sai Kishore, Hrithik Shokeen, Rahul Chahar, Vaibhav Arora, Anshul Kamboj, Aaqib Khan, Rasik Salam.

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