The second game of the 2025 Asia Cup sees defending champions India take on hosts United Arab Emirates at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on September 10, 2025.
For the game, here are our preview and predictions.
With no Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, or Ravindra Jadeja — all three having retired from the shortest format — the tournament favourites and current T20I world champions are looking to the future, with Suryakumar Yadav leading a young Indian squad.
There is still plenty of experience in the batting unit, however, thanks to the likes of Shubman Gill, Yadav, and Sanju Samson, while Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, and Rinku Singh provide further firepower. Jasprit Bumrah will be leading the bowling unit, with Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana as the two other pacers. Hardik Pandya, another experienced operator, will be key for India in both departments, while Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, and Axar Patel make up an exciting spin trio. A young and exciting squad, the Men in Blue more or less have all the bases covered.
Going up against India are the UAE, who unsurprisingly start as the underdogs. One of the lower-ranked teams in the tournament, they come into the tournament on the back of five straight losses. Their biggest issue in the recent games has been their inability to chase down targets despite getting strong starts. The likes of Alishan Sharafu, Muhammad Waseem, and Muhammad Zohaib will be crucial for them once again, while the struggling middle and lower orders are something the management will want to address.
Haider Ali and Junaid Siddique will be leading the bowling attack for the UAE, with the likes of Muhammad Rohid, Simranjeet Singh, and Muhammad Jawadullah bringing some experience in what is an otherwise inexperienced bowling attack.
India might be coming into the competition with some new faces and in a transition phase, but they still remain the favourites for the tournament and should win this opening encounter comfortably on what is likely to be a slow-ish strip in Dubai.
Fantasy XI: Abhishek Sharma, Muhammad Waseem, Alishan Sharafu, Shubman Gill, Asif Khan, Hardik Pandya, Varun Chakravarthy, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Muhammad Rohid, Haider Ali
Venue: Dubai Sports City Cricket Stadium
Winners Prediction: India
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