Updates:
Team India captain Suryakumar Yadav has won the toss and opt to bowl first at the Dubai International Stadium in their Asia Cup 2025 opener against the UAE. Sanju Samson has been included in the playing XI after plenty of deliberation and is likely to come in at No.4. The 34-year-old cited dew as the factor behind wanting to bowl.
United Arab Emirates (Playing XI): Muhammad Waseem(c), Alishan Sharafu, Muhammad Zohaib, Rahul Chopra(w), Asif Khan, Harshit Kaushik, Haider Ali, Dhruv Parashar, Muhammad Rohid Khan, Junaid Siddique, Simranjeet Singh.
India (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson(w), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy.
Team India will make a much-anticipated return to the field on September 10, Wednesday as they will kick off their Asia Cup 2025 campaign against hosts United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the Dubai International Stadium. The Men in Blue will notably play a T20I for the first time since February when they clashed in a series against England.
India, ranked No.1 in the World T20I rankings, arguably start as overwhelming favorites to win the tournament. The Men in Blue have a strong squad and multi-faceted players at their disposal despite not selecting the likes of Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal. But India will be wary of the dew coming in Dubai; hence, toss will be a decisive factor.
Although UAE ended the preceding tri-series against Pakistan and Afghanistan winless, they showcased massive potential. They also came quite close to beating both the opposition on both occasions. UAE had agonizingly lost only four runs to Afghanistan while chasing 171 for victory. Hence, UAE could prove to be a tough competitor, especially in their conditions.
