Expected Indian squad for 2019 World Cup on the basis of Asia Cup performance

Asia Cup was a trial event for fringe Indian players, it was a golden opportunity for those who were looking to cement a place in the Indian team. India used this event to streamline the squad for next year's world cup in England.

There are few slots in the Indian team which are up for grabs. #4 and #5 slots in the batting order were uncertain before the tournament. Also, India is desperately looking for a left-arm seamer for the sake of variety in their fast bowling department. In addition to this, an event like World Cup also requires a backup wicket-keeper and there are few players who are fighting for that slot as well.

India won the Asia Cup convincingly, but, to an extent, the selection conundrum still remains. Let us take a look at the probable Indian squad for the next year's World Cup after taking into account the Asia Cup performance :

#1 Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan is one of the pillars of Indian batting. He was the man of the series in Asia cup, which speaks volumes about his impact during the tournament. He has scored runs all over the world in one day cricket which makes him an exceptional performer in the format. He has scored 4823 runs at an average of 46.82 with a strike rate of 94.42 from 110 ODI's. This is an exceptional record by any standards. He should be an automatic selection in the World Cup squad.

#2 Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma is one of the most feared batsmen in the world cricket

Rohit Sharma is an automatic choice for the slot of the other opener. He captained Indian side during the Asia Cup and proved his credentials as a leader as well.

Rohit Sharma - the batsman, also showed up during the Asia Cup and played some crucial innings during the tournament. He will be an important cog in the wheel for India during the next year's World Cup.

#3 Virat Kohli

Kohli needs to do better as a captain

Indian captain Kohli will come back to his number 3 slot in the batting order which was occupied by Ambati Rayudu during the Asia cup. Kohli is expected to lead India during the World Cup and he will be very important for India's plans during the world cup both as a captain and as a batsman.

There is very little doubt about his credentials as a world class batsman, but, he still needs to prove himself as a good leader. If he gets to captain the Indian side then the world cup will be a great opportunity for Kohli to stamp his mark as a captain.

#4 Ambati Rayudu

Rayudu has been consistent in the limited opportunities presented to him

Number 4 position is a bone of contention in the Indian One Day side. There are few players who are in the fray for this position namely Ambati Rayudu, KL Rahul, Dinesh Karthik and Manish Pandey. After Asia Cup, Rayudu has emerged as the strongest contender for this position, moreover, his game suits the number 4 position, unlike KL Rahul, who is an out and out top order batsman, Rayudu has the experience and skill to play in the middle overs.

Dinesh Karthik and Manish Pandey have not been able to capitalise the opportunities that came their way which makes Rayudu's case even stronger.

Wicket-Keepers - MS Dhoni/Rishabh Pant

MS Dhoni has struggled with the bat lately

Notwithstanding his recent struggles with the bat, MS Dhoni appears to be a certainty for the next year's World Cup. Dhoni has the confidence of team management and his experience also goes in his favour. Having said that, he needs to utilise the upcoming opportunities against West Indies and Australia to find the lost mojo as a batsman.

Dinesh Karthik has been unable to utilise the opportunities that came his way. His soft dismissals are too frequent for a top order batsman, Karthik has this tendency of getting out after getting a start, which often costs the team dearly.

Rishabh Pant will be a good pick

Karthik's loss seems to be Rishabh Pant's gain as he is the other wicket-keeper batsman who is in the scheme of things of Indian cricket. With his explosive batting style helping his cause, Rishabh Pant seems to be the player who will get the nod for back up wicket-keeper slot.

#6 Kedar Jadhav

Jadhav has been a revelation with the ball

One of the biggest gains of the Asia Cup for India is Kedar Jadhav. He enhanced his reputation as a finisher with a calculated knock in the final despite carrying an injury. Also, his part-time dibbly-dobblers seem to be working at the international level with Jadhav picking up crucial wickets in the middle overs.

Jadhav seems to be a good package (for the World Cup) at the moment - he has the ability to finish matches, he can hit lofty blows from the word go and also, he has the ability to bowl some important middle overs for his team. Jadhav seems to be the right person for number #5 or #6 in the Indian batting order.

All Rounders - Hardik Pandya/Ravindra Jadeja

Pandya will be useful in England

Pandya has been an asset for India in the limited overs cricket. He will be handy as the fifth bowler in English conditions, also, his ability to hit the ball from the word go puts him in a good stead for the role of a finisher in the Indian team.

Pandya's Asia Cup came to an abrupt end after he picked up an injury in the group stage match against Pakistan. But, once he is back to full fitness, he should be an automatic selection in the Indian team, especially in English conditions.

Jadeja has improved as a batsman

Coming to Jadeja, he made a strong comeback to the Indian team after remaining in the wilderness (from one day cricket) for 15 months. Jadeja had an impressive outing against Bangladesh in his comeback match where he picked up 4 wickets. But, Jadeja impressed the most with his calculated batting in the Asia Cup, the way he batted against Afghanistan and in the final against Bangladesh - it was very heartening to see. It looked a newborn Jadeja the batsman, as earlier he used to throw away his wicket through rash shots but not this time around.

Jadeja's performance in the Asia Cup should be enough to bring him back in the scheme of things in Indian One Day cricket.

Spinners- Kuldeep Yadav/Yuzvendra Chahal

Kuldeep Yadav is getting better day by day

Due to his performance in the Asia Cup, Kuldeep Yadav further enhanced his reputation as the frontline Indian spinner. He picked up 10 wickets in 6 matches during the tournament.

Kuldeep's growth as an international spinner has been really rapid and his good performance against teams which are traditionally good players of spin is a testimony to this fact. Kuldeep should be an easy pick as the frontline Indian spinner in the World Cup squad.

Chahal had an average Asia cup by his standards but he still remains the preferred leg-spinner for the Indian think-tank. Chahal has a good track record in the limited number of matches he has played for India, so far and there doesn't seem to be any reason for Chahal to get ignored for the World Cup squad.

Fast Bowlers - Jasprit Bumrah/Bhuvneshwar Kumar/Khaleel Ahmed

Khaleel impressed during Asia Cup

Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar were excellent as India's frontline pace bowlers, during the Asia Cup. Both these bowlers have an amazing skill set which makes them equally effective during both opening spell and death overs. Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah are expected to lead India's charge during the next year's World Cup. Both these bowlers have an excellent track record in England which makes them an obvious choice for the marquee tournament.

In their quest to add some variety in their pace department Indian selectors drafted Khaleel Ahmed in the Indian squad for the Asia Cup. Khaleel Ahmed did not disappoint them, he gave a glimpse of what he is capable of during the limited opportunities presented to him during the Asia Cup. He took 3 crucial wickets in his debut game against Hong Kong. Khaleel has good pace and his variation also makes him an effective bowler.

His decent performance in the Asia Cup, and non-availability of other good left-arm fast bowlers, makes him a strong contender to grab a fast bowlers spot in the World Cup squad.