Tilak Varma to Captain India A in Rising Stars Asia Cup in Doha, Patidar Named Vice-Captain

Tilak Varma will captain India A at the ACC Men's Rising Stars Asia Cup 2026 in Doha, after the BCCI men's selection committee announced a 15 member squad on Monday, November 2, 2026.

Varma, India's T20I vice-captain, leads the side, with Rajat Patidar named vice-captain. Patidar comes into the role as a two time IPL winning captain, IANS reported. The pair take over the leadership from Jitesh Sharma and Naman Dhir, who were captain and vice-captain of India A in the 2025 edition of the tournament.

The tournament runs from November 19 to 29, 2026, in Doha, Qatar.

The squad in full

The 15 players named are Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Prabhsimran Singh, Tilak Varma, Rajat Patidar, Rinku Singh, Kumar Kushagra, Suryansh Shedge, Shahbaz Ahmed, Vipraj Nigam, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Harshit Rana, Prince Yadav and Arshad Khan.

Prabhsimran Singh and Kumar Kushagra are the two wicketkeepers in the squad, marked as such in the announced list. Cricbuzz describes Abhishek Sharma, who is also in the squad, as the world's No. 1 T20I batter.

Varma arrives at the tournament after he recently helped India to a 3-2 T20I series victory over New Zealand, ESPNcricinfo reported.

Harshit Rana returns

Harshit Rana returns to action in this squad after recovering from a rectus femoris strain. ESPNcricinfo reported that Rana sustained the injury during a match simulation at the BCCI Centre of Excellence on September 7, after he had initially reported there for hamstring injury rehab. His place in the 15 puts him back in a named India A squad for the Doha tournament.

Groups and fixtures

India A are in Group B with Pakistan A, Nepal and the United Arab Emirates. Group A is made up of Bangladesh A, Sri Lanka A, Afghanistan A and Hong Kong, China.

India A begin their campaign on November 20 against Nepal. They then play Pakistan A on November 22 and the UAE on November 24, Cricbuzz reported. The semi-finals are set for November 26 and 27, and the final is on November 29, the last day of the tournament.

For Varma, the captaincy puts India's T20I vice-captain in charge of the A side for a full tournament run, with Patidar as his deputy, a settled top order on paper from the named squad, and a group that brings the Pakistan A fixture in the second match, on November 22 in Doha.