The Indian cricket team has been announced for the Asia Cup T20 starting on September 9. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar announced the team on Tuesday. Suryakumar Yadav will captain the team, while Shubman Gill has been made the vice-captain. This year, India is hosting the Cricket Asia Cup. It is being organized in the UAE after Pakistan refused to play in India. The tournament will start on September 9.
Team India’s first match will be against UAE on September 10. After that, the team will play against their archrivals, Pakistan, on September 14. Earlier, when the Indian team last played T20 against England in February, Shubman Gill was not part of the team. Shubman has returned to the T20Is team. At the same time, the suspense over Jasprit Bumrah is also over. He will also be seen playing in the Asia Cup.
Apart from this, the team has the same players who have been part of the team earlier. Rinku Singh has managed to make a place, while Shreyas Iyer has been overlooked once again. The Indian team has four specialist batsmen, while there are four all-rounders. There are two wicketkeeper-batters in the form of Jitesh and Samson, while there are three specialist pacers and two specialist spinners.
3 Special Things about Team Selection
- Shubman Gill became vice-captain. Indian Test team captain Shubman Gill has been made the vice-captain. Before the selection, Gill’s place in the team was not confirmed in media reports. He was not included in the team, even in the T20 World Cup. However, Gill scored 650 runs in the IPL.
- Siraj and Washington did not get a chance. Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Verma, Rinku Singh, and Harshit Rana have got a chance in the team. However, Mohammad Siraj and Washington Sundar have not been selected in the team. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sundar will be the reserve players of the team.
- Bumrah’s return after the T20 World Cup: Jasprit Bumrah has returned to the T20 team. He played the final of the last T20 International T20 World Cup 2024. Shreyas Iyer, who led Punjab Kings to the final in the IPL, has also not been selected in the team.
Indian Squad for Asia Cup 2025: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson, Harshit Rana, and Rinku Singh.
3 Matches between India and Pakistan
First match: This is official and will be played on 14 September at Dubai International Stadium. But there is a possibility of 2 more matches between India and Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025.
Second match: After the league stage in the Asia Cup, there will be a Super-4 round. If India and Pakistan reach the Super-4 round, then the second match between India and Pakistan can be held on 21 September.
Third match: If both teams, i.e., India and Pakistan, reach the final, then the third match between India and Pakistan in the Asia Cup will be played on 28 September.
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The Indian team has been placed in Group A. Along with this, there are teams from Pakistan, the UAE, and Oman. Group B has Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Hong Kong. All the teams of the group will play 1-1 matches against each other. India will face UAE on 10 September, Pakistan on 14, and Oman on 19.
India has won the Asia Cup 8 times. The Asia Cup started in 1984. So far, this tournament has been played 16 times. India has won it the most, i.e., 8 times. Sri Lanka has won this tournament 6 times and Pakistan 2 times. However, there is not a single instance when India and Pakistan have collided in the final.