Asia Cup 2025: Defeat Against UAE Could Complicate India’s Campaign

India has been drawn in Group A alongside UAE, Pakistan, and Oman. With only three group matches to play, at least two wins are required to secure a place in the Super-4.

While the clash with Pakistan is expected to be a close contest, victories over UAE and Oman are crucial.

Source : @BCCI / X

Match number two of the Asia Cup 2025 will feature India taking on UAE in Dubai. Under the leadership of Suryakumar Yadav, Team India will aim to kick off their campaign on a winning note against a relatively weaker opponent.

But the challenge is not as simple as it looks. The tournament format leaves little room for error, and an early setback against UAE could make India’s path to the Super-4 stage complicated.

Must-Win Game Against UAE

India has been drawn in Group A alongside UAE, Pakistan, and Oman.

With only three group matches to play, at least two wins are required to secure a place in the Super-4.

While the clash with Pakistan is expected to be a close contest, victories over UAE and Oman are crucial. If India slips against UAE and later loses to either Pakistan or Oman, their campaign could end in disappointment.

Head-to-Head Record

India and UAE have met just once before in the Asia Cup, back in 2016, when India recorded a convincing victory. The teams have also faced each other three times in ODIs, with India winning on each occasion.

IND vs UAE Probable XIs

India (Probable XI): Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Sanju Samson (wk), Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh.

UAE (Probable XI): Muhammad Waseem (c), Aryansh Sharma (wk), Vriitya Aravind, Alishan Sharafu, Basil Hameed, Rameez Shahzad, Asif Khan, Aayan Afzal Khan, Junaid Siddique, Zahoor Khan, Rohan Mustafa

India’s Squad

India’s squad for the Asia Cup 2025 includes: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Tilak Verma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana.

Reserves: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel.