Former Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Akhtar has cast aspersions on India’s playing XI for their Asia Cup 2025 opener against UAE. The Men in Blue, led by skipper Suryakumar Yadav, face a selection headache as they lock horns with the co-hosts, with questions pertaining to Shubman Gill, Sanju Samson among others remaining unanswered. Ahead of India’s tournament opener, Akhtar has commented on what India’s combination should be and who they should leave out.
What should India’s XI vs UAE, Asia Cup look like?
In a video on ‘Outside Edge’ YouTube channel, ahead of the IND vs UAE Asia Cup opener, Akhtar wondered whom would the Indian team exclude from their playing XI. He noted that Gill was probably going to open with Sharma while Jasprit Bumrah, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Sanju Samson among others were already in fray.
“Achha, Abhishek bhi aa gaya? Bumrah bhi hai? Sanju Samson bhi hai, finally. Tilak bhi. Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Rinku Singh bhi hai, Shubman hai, Surya hai, Shivam Dube, apna Axar Patel. Yaar, yeh kis ko baahar bithaayenge? (Who do they leave out?)” Akhtar said.,
It is pertinent to point out that Sanju has lost the role of an opener as Gill makes his return to T20Is after a year. Meanwhile, he is all but likely to bat in the middle-order if at all, given that Tilak will be slotted at number 3 and Jitesh as a finisher. Further, Bumrah is expected to feature in the contest against UAE simply because of his inclusion in the Asia Cup squad despite workload management concerns.
Speaking on the result of the game, Akhtar opined that it would be better for UAE if the lost by a smaller margin.
“See, we know they are going to lose. I just feel that losing by a small margin would be a win for the UAE. This is my complaint against Hong Kong, who lost by 94 runs to Afghanistan last evening. You had to lose; at least lose close so that you get something. Show some fight,” he added.
