Rajat Patidar Withdraws From India A Squad for Rising Stars Asia Cup

Rajat Patidar has officially withdrawn from the India A squad for the upcoming Rising Stars Asia Cup, set to begin on November 19 in Doha, Qatar. The right-handed batter, who was originally designated as the team’s vice-captain under skipper Tilak Varma, notified the BCCI that he is unavailable for 50-over selection as he continues to “manages existing injuries.”

The team management has drafted Delhi all-rounder Ayush Badoni as his replacement. Badoni enters the tournament in excellent form, having amassed 559 runs across four Ranji Trophy appearances, a tally that includes two double-centuries. With Patidar’s exit, the BCCI has confirmed that Rinku Singh will step into the vice-captaincy role to support Varma.

Patidar’s recent workload included captaining Madhya Pradesh during the initial leg of the Ranji Trophy, where he notched centuries against Bihar and Puducherry. He also participated in the recent one-day series against Australia A in Puducherry, recording two half-centuries over three matches as the team fell to a 2-1 series defeat. He was part of the India A squad that went down 2-1 to Australia A in the one-dayers in Puducherry, scoring two half-centuries in three games, prior to that.

India A is positioned in Group B alongside Nepal, the UAE, and Pakistan A. The squad’s opening fixture is scheduled against Nepal on November 20 at the West End Park International Cricket Stadium. The full roster for the Rising Stars Asia Cup features Tilak Varma (captain), Rinku Singh (vice-captain), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Prabhsimran Singh, Kumar Kushagra, Suryansh Shedge, Shahbaz Ahmed, Vipraj Nigam, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Harshit Rana, Prince Yadav, Arshad Khan, and Ayush Badoni. India A squad for Rising Stars Asia Cup 2026: Tilak Varma (captain), Rinku Singh (vice-captain), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Prabhsimran Singh, Kumar Kushagra, Suryansh Shedge, Shahbaz Ahmed, Vipraj Nigam, Har.