Not India vs Pakistan, Suryakumar Yadav And Co. Primed To Play This Side In Asia Cup Final

Who is currently the strongest team in Asia? Over the course of the next two weeks, that will be decided in the UAE, where the top eight Asian cricket teams will vie for the Asia Cup T20 2025. While upsets are common in the T20 format, the five Asian heavyweights in focus will be India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. India and Pakistan are in Group A along with UAE and Oman. Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are in Group B, along with Hong Kong.

Former India star Aakash Chopra said Afghanistan is a team that cannot be taken lightly. He also said an India vs Afghanistan final is a strong possibility. "They (Afghanistan) have been the bridesmaid but not the bride so far. They are a team that cannot be taken lightly. You respect them and praise them a lot, but they haven't won enough titles. They've never won the Asia Cup. They reached the T20 World Cup semi-final and did well in the ODI World Cup as well, which is great - but now they have a massive opportunity to go all the way," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

Chopra went on to decode their likely Playing XI: "Ibrahim Zadran with Rahmanullah Gurbaz, then Sediqullah Atal and Darwish Rasooli. After that, Azmatullah Omarzai and Karim Janat, Rashid Khan after Mohammad Nabi, and then Fazalhaq Farooqi, Noor Ahmad, and Naveen-ul-Haq," he said.

"I feel this could be their XI for now. Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Allah Ghazanfar can also play. They can make plenty of changes and strengthen their bowling even more. You make them contenders if you give them pitches to their liking. I was talking about an India-Sri Lanka final yesterday, but if it isn't that, an India-Afghanistan final is also a great possibility."

Chopra added that Afghanistan has the ability to bowl 16 overs of spin in the slow UAE conditions: "It's a good mixture of experience and youth. They have the experience of Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan, and you'll also see Sediqullah Atal, Ibrahim Zadran, and Rahmanullah Gurbaz. You'll see strikers and anchors, and an all-rounder in Azmatullah Omarzai. It's a very well-balanced and healthy mix of experience and youth."

"The second incredible thing about them is their spin department. Rashid Khan is back. You get Noor Ahmad along with him. If you manage one, you'll get trapped by the other. And if you manage both, Mohammad Nabi bowls very well too. If they wish, they can also bring in Allah Ghazanfar. They can play four spinners - which means they can bowl 16 overs of spin."

Topics mentioned in this article

Asia Cup 2025 India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team Afghanistan Sri Lanka Cricket Team Cricket