Asia Cup 2025 Ranking the Strongest Playing 11 of All 8 Teams
From India and Pakistan to Afghanistan and Hong Kong, we look at the ranking of the strongest playing 11 for all 8 teams in the T20 version of the Asia Cup 2025.
It’s almost time as the multi-nation tournament resumes with the fight between the sub-continent Asian giants in the form of the Asia Cup 2025. With the next major ICC tournament being the T20 World Cup in 2026, this edition of the Asia Cup 2025 shall be played in T20 format. It is the format that we all love the most, and to grace the tournament, we have 8 teams battling it out for 20 days starting September 9.
The 8 teams participating in this year’s Asia Cup are India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, UAE, and Oman. As per the format, the four teams are divided into two groups. While India, Pakistan, Oman, and the UAE are in Group A, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Hong Kong are in Group B. The Asia Cup may not be the most hotshot event in T20 cricket, but the madness for India vs Pakistan will make it an event to remember.
Since the time India stopped playing bilateral series against Pakistan, both teams have only been playing against each other in multi-nation tournaments. But aside from India vs Pakistan, which team has the best squad and playing 11? The T20 format is such that no team can be discounted when it comes to competing in the tournament. So, let’s analyze the current squad of each team, and find out the strong playing 11 ranking for the Asia Cup 2025.
Asia Cup 2025 Ranking All 8 Teams Strongest Playing 11
Asia Cup 2025 Hong Kong Team’s Strongest Playing 11
- Zeeshan Ali (wk)
- Babar Hayat
- Nizakat Khan
- Anshuman Rath
- Yasim Murtaza (c)
- Martin Coetzee
- Aizaz Khan
- Ehsan Khan
- Ayush Shukla
- Mohammad Ghazanfar
- Mohammed Wahid
For number 8, we have the emerging talent in the form of the Hong Kong team. Hong Kong will go into the tournament as underdogs, and if they spring a surprise by beating any of the likes of Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, or Bangladesh, it would be quite an achievement. The team will need some good performance from their key players like Babar Hayat, Yasim Murtaza, Aizaz Khan, Haroon Arshad, and Mohammad Ghazanfar.
Asia Cup 2025 Oman Team’s Strongest Playing 11
- Jatinder Singh (c)
- Aamir Kaleem
- Hammad Mirza
- Mohammed Nadeem
- Ashish Odedara
- Vinayak Shukla
- Aryan Bisht
- Sufyan Mehmood
- Samay Shrivastava
- Shakeel Ahmad
- Hassnain Shah
For number 7, we have the Oman team, and the team is making inroads in International cricket slowly and steadily. Oman has their Captain Jatinder Singh leading the batting for them. The team will see Hammad Mirza, Kaleem, Vinayak Shukla, Ashish Odedara, etc. Whereas in the bowling department, the Oman team will depend on the likes of Samam Shrivastava, Shakeel Ahmed, Hassnain Shah, etc. Overall, Oman will be looking forward to giving a tough fight to the Indian and Pakistan teams in the group stage.
Asia Cup 2025 UAE Team’s Strongest Playing 11
- Alishan Sharafu
- Muhammad Waseem (c)
- Ethan D’Souza
- Asif Khan
- Rahul Chopra
- Harshit Kaushik
- Dhruv Parashar
- Haider Ali
- Junaid Siddique
- Muhammad Jawadullah
- Muhammad Rohid
For number 6, we have the much-improved and host team, the UAE. Led by Muhammad Waseem, the UAE team will be looking to give a tough fight to the Indian and Pakistan teams. While a win against India looks a distant dream, the UAE team can actually spring a surprise when they play against the likes of Pakistan and Oman. It would be a dream come true for the UAE if they actually manage to beat these teams.
Asia Cup 2025 Bangladesh Team’s Strongest Playing 11
- Parvez Hossain
- Tanzid Hasan
- Litton Das (c)
- Towhid Hridoy
- Jaker Ali
- Mohammad Saifuddin
- Mahedi Hasan
- Rishad Hossain
- Taskin Ahmed
- Mustafizur Rahman
- Tanzim Sakib
At number 5, we have the Bangladesh team, which is playing the Asia Cup 2025 without a few quality players like Shakib Al Hasan, Mehidy Miraz, Mahmudullah, Soumya Sarkar, etc. The team has a good bowling lineup, and that is their strength. The team has quality bowlers in the form of Rishad Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Sakib, and Taskin Ahmed. In the batting department, Bangladesh will depend on Captain Litton Das, alongside Towhid Hridoy and Jaker Ali.
Asia Cup 2025 Pakistan Team Strongest Playing 11
- Sahibzada Farhan
- Saim Ayub
- Fakhar Zaman
- Salman Agha (c)
- Mohammad Haris
- Hasan Nawaz
- Mohammad Nawaz
- Abrar Ahmed
- Haris Rauf
- Shaheen Afridi
- Hasan Ali
For number 4, we have a surprise in the form of Pakistan. It won’t be an understatement, but this is the weakest Pakistan team in the last couple of decades. Barring the bowling lineup, which is kind of decent, the batting is lineup is vastly inexperienced, and lacks firepower. Fakhar Zaman seems to be the only quality batter in the side, and the likes of Saim Ayub, Salman Agha, Mohammad Haris, etc., are yet to prove their mettle in T20Is.
Asia Cup 2025 Sri Lanka Team’s Strongest Playing 11
- Kusal Mendis
- Pathum Nissanka
- Kusal Perera
- Charith Asalanka
-
Dasun Shanaka
- Kamindu Mendis
- Wanindu Hasaranga
- Dushmantha Chameera
- Maheesh Theekshana
- Matheesha Pathirana
- Nuwan Thushara
Number 3 belongs to the Sri Lankan team, and in the Asian continent, they are the rightful number 3 team on paper. As compared to Pakistan, Sri Lanka have a better bowling lineup as well as a batting lineup. However, when we compare to the Sri Lankan team of the 2000s, which had the likes of Sangakkara, Dilshan, Jayasuriya, and Jayawardene together, this Sri Lankan stands nowhere near them. The team will depend on the likes of Pathirana, Hasaranga, Kusal Mendis, Nissanka, and Asalanka to have a good tournament.
Asia Cup 2025 Afghanistan Strongest Playing 11
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk)
- Ibrahim Zadran
- Sediqullah Atal
- Azmatullah Omarzai
- Karim Janat
- Mohammad Nabi
- Gulbadin Naib
- Allah Ghazanfar
- Rashid Khan (c)
- Fazalhaq Farooqi
- Noor Ahmad
Number 2 belongs to the Afghanistan team, and this shows the rise of Afghanistan cricket in the shortest format of the game. Afghanistan have a strong team, which looks well-balanced in all departments. Be it batting, batting depth, spin bowling, or pace bowling, Afghanistan looks quite a strong team. If this team plays to its potential, there is no reason why they cannot qualify for the finals, unless they face the Indian team in the Semi-finals.
Asia Cup 2025 Team India Strongest Playing 11
- Abhishek Sharma
- Shubman Gill
- Tilak Varma
- Suryakumar Yadav (c)
- Axar Patel
- Hardik Pandya
- Jitesh Sharma (wk)
- Arshdeep Singh
- Kuldeep Yadav
- Jasprit Bumrah
- Varun Chakravarthy
At numero uno, we have the Indian team, which undoubtedly looks the strongest of all. It won’t be an understatement to make, but Team India are playing a full-fledged team against teams that will be defeated even by the India A team. Nevertheless, now that the Indian team is playing a full-fledged, strong squad, what exactly does their strongest playing 11 look like? It would be an interesting playing 11 with Shubman Gill now in the squad.
With the return of Gill, there is no doubt now on the opening combination with Gill and Abhishek confirmed as openers. It’s unfortunate for Sanju Samson, but it seems India are looking at Jitesh Sharma as the wicket-keeper finisher. The middle-order should see Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, and Axar Patel, with finishing dependent on Hardik Pandya and Jitesh Sharma. Since we have a strong batter like Jitesh at 7, India can afford to play four frontline bowlers, and that would make this a playing 11 almost impossible to beat.
Thanks for reading! Based on the ranking, what’s your best playing 11 for Team India for the Asia Cup 2025? Please share your thoughts at business@cricalytics.com
