U-19 selectors bring in Yogesh for Lanka tour

Yogesh Sharma is the newest face in the India Under-19 squad which is scheduled to play in a tri-series in Sri Lanka between December 2-21, the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) said on Monday.

The series which features the hosts, India and England is expected to serve as a perfect platform for preparation just before the start of the World Cup in January next year in Bangladesh.

The junior selection committee of the BCCI zeroed in upon the 18 members of the squad after their meeting here on Sunday, where India won a tri-series against Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

Pacer Pradeep Pramanik, Shubham Nayak and Izhan Sayeed miss out from the outfit which won on Sunday.

The committee has trusted almost the same players to do the job once more and they would hope the likes of wicket-keeper- batsman Risabh Pant (adjudged man-of-the-series here) and leg-spinner Zeeshan Ansari can replicate the success in the island country.

The tourney also provides an opportunity for the likes of Virat Singh and captain Ricky Bhui to get amongst some big runs as they had quite a low-key series here.

Indian batting legend Rahul Dravid had said they are close to identifying the core team for the World Cup on Sunday, and with this selection it is almost certain that India would ideally go into the world event with these young talents in the player's list.

The squad:

Ricky Bhui (Captain), Rishabh Pant, Yogesh Sharma, Kanishk Seth, Amandeep Khare, Mayank Dagar, Avesh Khan, Ishan Kishan, Virat Binod Singh, Rahul Batham, Anmolpreet Singh, Mahipal Lomror, Syed Khaleel Ahmed, Washington Sundar, Sarfaraz Khan, Zeeshan Ansari, Shubham Mavi, Himanshu Rana

Rahul Dravid - Coach