Team India's 17-member squad for Asia Cup 2023 was announced by chief selector Ajit Agarkar on Monday (August 21) in New Delhi. India's squad was largely along expected lines with Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul marking a return from injuries. However, one major name that was missing from the squad was that of leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. The Rajasthan Royals (RR) star yet again failed to make the cut for the Asia Cup and thus looks unlikely to be part of the ODI World Cup squad even though it was hinted that the door is still open.
Following his snub from Asia Cup, Chahal came up with an epic short response on social media. His post contained no words but just a few emojis which were enough to convey his message of a better tomorrow and how he was determined to see a bright day coming ahead.
Notably, Agarkar was asked about the omission of Chahal at the press conference and even though he deemed him a great servant of Indian cricket, he cited the team combination suggesting that two wrist spinners were hard to fit in at the moment and it was Kuldeep who was a bit ahead than Chahal for the place of a single wrist spinner in the side.
"Terrific performer but we had to look at the balance of the team. To fit in two wrist spinners was difficult. We can fit only one wrist spinner. It’s unfortunate for one to miss out and right now, Kuldeep is a bit ahead," Agarkar said.
Chahal had previously failed to make the squad when the T20 World Cup 2021 Indian team was announced. In 2022, he was included in the squad but could not be a regular member of the team with the team preferring Ravichandran Ashwin over him.