Yashasvi Jaiswal: Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has said that opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal should be an automatic selection in India’s Asia Cup 2025 squad. He feels that with Rohit Sharma having retired from the format, Jaiswal is an automatic pick, considering he was also the backup opener at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Ashwin admitted that selectors find themselves in a tricky position as far as picking the second opening batter is concerned. He said on his YouTube channel “Ash ki Baat”:
“There are a few talking points regarding the Asia Cup. The first question that comes to everyone’s mind is whether Shubman Gill fits into the T20 plans because in the last World Cup, Yashasvi Jaiswal was the backup opener. So Jaiswal automatically gets a kick-in. Rohit Sharma is not going to be a part of that team, so Jaiswal automatically gets a look-in.”
“Now, who is going to be that other opener? Shubman Gill had an outstanding series. Can he return to the squad? Sanju Samson has had a fabulous run as a T20 opener for India. So I think it is a tricky state for the selectors. Can Shreyas Iyer make a comeback? There is a lot of decision-making that the selectors have to make. Even if there is a lot to talk about, the Indian T20I side has been a successful unit”.
Earlier on Saturday, August 16, India received a boost when reports emerged that captain Suryakumar Yadav had cleared a fitness test. Reports also said that the 34-year-old would attend the selection meeting to choose India’s squad for the Asia Cup 2025.
Yashasvi Jaiswal’s T20 career in numbers
Opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal made his T20I debut for India against the West Indies in August 2023. In the last 24 months, the southpaw has played 23 T20I matches and scored 723 runs at a strike rate of 164.31 with a best score of 100. His last T20I came against Sri Lanka in July 2024.
The batter, however, has emerged as a key cog in the wheel for his Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Rajasthan Royals. The 23-year-old has made 2166 runs in 67 matches at a strike rate of 152.85 with 15 fifties and two hundreds. He was also one of the RR’s retained players ahead of the mega auctions in November 2024.