Last Updated on 4 weeks by Charbel Coorey
The 2025 edition of the Asia Cup is fast approaching, and all eight teams are finalising their preparations. The tournament, to be played in the T20I format in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), begins on September 9, with the final to take place at Dubai International Stadium on September 28.
There will be two groups of four, before the Super Four stage decides who will make the final. Group A consists of India, Pakistan, Oman, and UAE, while Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Hong Kong will do battle in Group B.
2025 Asia Cup squads: Who have the eight teams selected?
Group A
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.
Suryakumar Yadav leads a strong India squad, despite there being disappointment among fans at the exclusion of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer. Shubman Gill is the vice-captain.
India have plenty of power and balance in their lineup, with the likes of Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel available as all-rounders.
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.
Pakistan have made big decisions under new coach Mike Hesson. They have excluded both Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan with a call for the duo to improve their strike rates. Salman Ali Agha will lead a squad of players looking to make a mark ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup.
Oman: Jatinder Singh (c), Hammad Mirza, Vinayak Shukla, Sufyan Yousuf, Ashish Odedera, Aamir Kaleem, Mohammed Nadeem, Sufyan Mehmood, Aryan Bisht, Karan Sonavale, Zikriya Islam, Hassnain Ali Shah, Faisal Shah, Muhammed Imran, Nadeem Khan, Shakeel Ahmad, Samay Shrivastava.
Oman are ready for their first-ever Asia Cup after months of drama. Players who featured in the 2024 T20 World Cup did not receive their prize money until July 2025, according to ESPNcricinfo. There are new faces in their 2025 Asia Cup squad, with Sufyan Yousuf, Zikriya Islam, Faisal Shah and Nadeem Khan a chance of making their international debuts.
United Arab Emirates: Yet to name squad
Group B
Afghanistan: Rashid Khan (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Darwish Rasooli, Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Karim Janat, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mohammad Ishaq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Allah Ghazanfar, Noor Ahmad, Farid Malik, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Rashid Khan will lead an Afghanistan team looking to build on their semi-final appearance at last year’s T20 World Cup. They have an experienced squad with a host of all-rounders and good spin options including 19-year-old Allah Ghazanfar alongside Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and skipper Rashid.
Bangladesh: Litton Das (c), Tanzid Hasan, Parvez Hossain Emon, Saif Hassan, Tawhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali Anik, Shamim Hossain, Quazi Nurul Hasan Sohan, Shak Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Shaif Uddin
Litton Das leads a Bangladesh team that comes into the Asia Cup feeling confident. They beat Sri Lanka 2-1 (away) and Pakistan 2-1 (home) last month. Their pace-bowling has improved in recent years, but the batting has to click in what is a tough Group B.
Sri Lanka: Charith Asalanka (c), Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Nuwanidu Fernando, Kamindu Mendis, Kamil Mishara, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Chamika Karunaratne, Maheesh Theekshana, Dushmantha Chameera, Binura Fernando, Nuwan Thushara, Matheesha Pathirana.
Wanindu Hasaranga has been picked in Sri Lanka’s 2025 Asia Cup squad despite being left out of the Zimbabwe tour due to a hamstring injury, as reported by ESPNcricinfo. Avishka Fernando, Dinesh Chandimal, Jeffrey Vandersay and Eshan Malinga have been left out of the squad that lost to Bangladesh, with batters Nuwanidu Fernando and Kamil Mishara coming in along with pace bowler Dushmantha Chameera.
Hong Kong, China: Yasim Murtaza (c), Babar Hayat, Zeeshan Ali, Niazakat Khan Mohammad, Nasrulla Rana, Martin Coetzee, Anshuman Rath, Kalhan Marc Challu, Ayush Ashish Shukla, Mohammad Aizaz Khan, Ateeq ul Rehman Iqbal, Kinchit Shah, Adil Mehmood, Haroon Mohammad Arshad, Ali Hassan, Shahid Wasif, Ghazanfar Mohammad, Mohammad Waheed, Anas Khan, Ehsan Khan.
Yasim Murtaza leads a Hong Kong team looking to make a mark in this tournament. Their last assignment was the Asia Pacific Cricket Champions Trophy, where they lost the final to Malaysia in Singapore. In the league stage, they beat Singapore twice, Samoa twice, and lost to Malaysia twice.
Hong Kong last featured in the 2022 edition, where they held their own pretty well against India, hitting 152/5.
