Former IPL coach named Head Coach of India A for Rising Stars Asia Cup

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Former India left-arm spinner Sunil Joshi, currently the head of spin at the Centre of Excellence (CoE), will serve as chief coach for the India A team captained by Jitesh Sharma at the Rising Stars Asia Cup in Doha starting November 14.

Joshi recently joined the CoE and was part of India A's assignment against Australia A. He replaces fellow CoE coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar, who is occupied with first-class games against South Africa A and upcoming India U-19 duties.

Sunil Joshi served as the spin bowling coach for Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL) starting from the 2023 season. Joshi continued with Punjab Kings through IPL 2025, helping the side reach the final, before stepping down in October 2025 for personal reasons to spend more time with his family.

Joshi will be supported by Apurva Desai (batting) and Pallav Vohra (fielding). The CoE follows a rotation system for in-house coaches across India A, Emerging, and U-19 teams to integrate coaches with first-class, age-group, or IPL experience, including former India opener Wasim Jaffer, involved with U-19 teams in the upcoming Challenger Series.

BCCI announced a strong India A squad that will be taking part in the competition, set to be held in Qatar. India have been grouped with UAE, Oman and arch-rivals Pakistan.

Young sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi has been named in the squad, while the likes of Priyansh Arya, Abishek Porel are also in the side.

India A Squad for Emerging Asia Cup

Priyansh Arya, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Nehal Wadhera, Naman Dhir (vc), Suryansh Shedge, Jitesh Sharma (c/wk), Ramandeep Singh, Harsh Dubey, Ashutosh Sharma, Yash Thakur, Gurjapneet Singh, Vijay Kumar Vyshak, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Abishek Porel (wk), Suyash Sharma.

Stand-by Players: Gurnoor Singh Brar, Kumar Kushagra, Tanush Kotian, Sameer Rizvi, Shaik Rasheed.