Sports Desk, New Delhi. India's senior batsman Ajinkya Rahane has made a prediction on India's playing XI for the Asia Cup. Rahane has not given place to Rinku Singh and Sanju Samson in his playing XI.

Rahane, who has played 20 T20 matches for India, also believes that he would like to see Sanju Samson as an opener, but he is sure that Indian Test captain Shubman Gill will open the innings with Abhishek Sharma.

Gill will open

Rahane said on his YouTube channel, Shubman is back in the team; I am sure he will open with Abhishek Sharma. Personally, I would like to see Sanju Samson in the team because he has done really well. He is very confident and a very good team man. I think this is a very important thing.

Sanju is a great player

He further said, Sanju is a great team man, but this is a big problem for the team management. In my opinion, Sanju Samson will probably sit out, although as I said, I would like him to play and be included in the playing XI. But Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma will open the innings for the team.BCCI announces squad

The Asia Cup matches will be played between eight teams in Dubai and Abu Dhabi from September 9 to 28. The BCCI Senior Men's Selection Committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, announced India's 15-member squad for the Asia Cup on Tuesday, August 19.

The BCCI named Shubman Gill as the vice-captain. The right-handed batsman from Punjab played his last T20I match for India against Sri Lanka on July 30, 2024. Suryakumar has been appointed as the captain of the team.