Asia Cup final: India aims for third consecutive win; Can Pakistan pull off an upset?

DUBAI: India will lock horns with arch-rivals Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 final, set to take place at the Dubai International Stadium on September 28.

This will be the first-ever Asia Cup final between India and Pakistan in the tournament’s 41-year history, adding an extra layer of excitement to the clash. Earlier in the tournament, India had already tasted victory against Pakistan twice.

India dominated the group stage match, cruising to a seven-wicket victory, thanks to Kuldeep Yadav’s match-winning spell of 3/18. In the Super 4s showdown, Abhishek Sharma’s explosive 74 off 39 balls dismantled Pakistan’s bowling attack, paving the way for a convincing six-wicket win for India.

For India, Abhishek Sharma has been the best batter of the ongoing tournament. Abhishek notched his third successive fifty during the ongoing Asia Cup, bashing Sri Lanka all over the park in their final Super Four clash on Friday, scoring an eye-catching 61 in 31 balls, with eight fours and two sixes. He struck at 196.77.

It has taken more than 40 years but we finally have it: a first India-Pakistan Asia Cup final pic.twitter.com/T2vOiRfURQ

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) September 26, 2025

He has overtaken Pakistan’s Mohammed Rizwan (281 runs in six innings during the 2022 edition of the T20I Asia Cup) to have the best-ever T20I Asia Cup by a batter. He is the leading run-getter in the ongoing Asia Cup with 309 runs in six innings at an average of 51.50, with a strike rate of 204.63 and three fifties. His best score is 75 during this tournament.

He has overtaken Pakistan’s Mohammed Rizwan (281 runs in six innings during the 2022 edition of the T20I Asia Cup) to have the best-ever T20I Asia Cup by a batter. Tilak Varma (144), Indian vice-captain Shubman Gill (115), and wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson (108) have played crucial roles in India’s success, forging vital partnerships that have fueled the team’s strong run in the tournament.

However, Suryakumar Yadav’s downturn since taking over as India’s skipper continued, after he orchestrated a gritty knock against Sri Lanka in the Super Fours fixture at the ongoing Asia Cup in Dubai on Friday. In July last year, the captaincy baton was passed from Rohit to Suryakumar after the seasoned opener bid adieu to the format following India’s fabled T20 World Cup title-winning campaign in Barbados.

Since moving to the pinnacle of leadership hierarchy, runs and form have eluded Suryakumar. The explosive swashbuckler walloped a ton against Bangladesh in October 2024, which remains his last fifty as a captain. In 2025, Suryakumar endured a dreadful run, managing 99 runs in 10 innings at 12.37, with an underwhelming strike rate of 110.00, with a best score of 47*.

Kuldeep Yadav has been phenomenal in the ongoing Asia Cup, leveraging his variations to outsmart batters. He currently tops the wicket-takers’ list with 13 wickets in six matches at an impressive average of 9.84 and an economy rate of 6.05.

Three more wickets will take him above all-rounder Hardik Pandya (14 scalps) as India’s top wicket-taker ever in the tournament, and a five-wicket haul could help him surpass Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga (17 scalps) as the highest-wicket-taker in the tournament’s history of three T20I editions.

For Pakistan, heading into the final pace duo of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf have been their strike bowlers with nine scalps each in six innings. Afridi has also been bowling at an impressive economy rate of just 6.91, while Rauf is bowling at a slightly higher rate of 7.84.

Sahibzada Farhan has been the best batter for Pakistan in the tournament, with 160 runs in six innings at an average of 26.66; however, his strike rate is just over 100. Apart from Farhan, Fakhar Zaman (135) and Mohammad Haris (131) have given him a helping hand throughout the tournament.

India: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson, Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh.

Pakistan: Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Waseem Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Afridi, Sufyan Moqim. (ANI)