India will begin their Asia Cup defence with a game against UAE on September 10.
The Asia Cup 2025 tournament is just over a month away and that’s the next bog tournament that Team India will be looking to win. The upcoming edition of the Asia Cup will be held in the T20 format in a bid to help teams prepare for the 2026 T20 World Cup, that will take place in India and Sri Lanka.
With the Asia Cup scheduled to begin on September 9, the BCCI could announce the India squad for the continental tournament in the upcoming days.
Let’s now take a look at the top 15 contenders who could make it into India’s Asia Cup 2025 squad:
Abhishek Sharma is the newest No.1 ranked batter in T20Is, and he did after Australia’s Travis Head missed the T20I series against West Indies recently.
Ever since making his T20I debut in July 2024, Abhishek has been a revelation in international cricket, scoring two fifties and as many centuries. The 24-year-old was the top-scorer in India’s home T20I series against England this year, aggregating 279 runs from five matches at a strike-rate of 219.68. An aggressive top-order batter like Abhishek makes him a favourite to make India’s Asia Cup squad.
He may not have played a T20I since July 2024, but Shubman Gill remains a prominent figure for India n the shortest format. The Gujarat Titans (GT) skipper enjoyed an excellent run in IPL 2025, scoring 650 runs from 15 matches that includes six fifties.
The new India Test skipper is coming off an impressive Test series against England, wherein he topped the run-scoring charts with 754 runs. An in-form player like Gill will be hard to ignore for the selectors.
It is a no-brainer that Suryakumar Yadav will feature in the Asia Cup as he is the captain of the Indian T20I side. The Mumbai Indians (MI) star impressed in IPL 2025, scoring 717 runs from 16 matches to end as the season’s second highest run-getter. He will be hoping to carry forward a similar kind of form into the Asia Cup.
He has been in and out of the team quite often, and Sanju Samson is in the news once again. The Kerala batter is reportedly India’s first-choice wicketkeeper and this is largely because of an injury to Rishabh Pant.
Pant had sustained a fracture on his right foot during the fourth Test against England, and eventually missed the fifth Test. He has been advised a six-week rest, which means his comeback is likely to be delayed.
Jitesh Sharma can be a valuable back-up wicketkeeper option for India. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) star enjoyed a decent outing, scoring 261 runs from 15 matches.
His unbeaten knock of 85 against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), though, stands out among all his performances this season, thus proving his worth as a potential finisher. He may not be a certainty, but there is a strong chancethat Jitesh can make India’s squad for the Asia Cup.
Riyan Parag is another favourite who could make India’s Asia Cup squad. He had a pretty good IPL 2025 season with Rajasthan Roya;s, scoring 393runs from 14 matches, although he just managed to score one fifty. The Assam cricketer, however, is still new to T20Is and has scored just 106 runs from six innings in the shortest format for India.
Hardik Pandya will play an integral part for India at the 2026 T20 World Cup, and the Baroda cricketer will be looking to find some form before that in the Asia Cup. The Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper had a mediocre outing in IPL with the bat, scoring just 224 runs from 15 matches, while also taking 14 wickets. Hardik Pandya’s workload is once again likely to be a talking point leading up to the Asia Cup.
Axar Patel will most certainly be front-runner to make the India squad for the Asia Cup, given the experience he possesses in the team’s spin bowling attack. His left-arm spin could also be a deadly weapon in spin-friendly conditions in India, which might give India an edge over the opposition. The Delhi Capitals (DC) captain scored 263 runs from 12 matches in IPL 2025, while taking just five wickets. The numbers, however, don’t do justice and it’s his experience that will matter for the Men in Blue.
Kuldeep Yadav last played a T20I for India during the 2024 T20 World Cup final against South Africa last June, but his experience, like that of Axar, could prove vital in UAE conditions. Kuldeep is coming on the back of a decent IPL 2025 season with Delhi Capitals, having taken 15 wickets from 14 matches at an economy rate of 7.08.
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Jasprit Vumrah’s workload will be the talking point once again in the lead-up to the Asia Cup. The Gujarat pacer played three Tests against England, as was planned, and took 14 wickets. There’s no doubt that he is an effective bowler, but he could still miss the Asia Cup. This comes after Bumrah sustained a knee injury during the Test series against England.
Over the last year, mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy’s stocks in international cricket have risen. He was the top wicket-taker in the T20I series against England this year, with 14 wickets. He then ended as the second highest wicket-taker in the 2025 Champions Trophy with nine scalps. Varun adds depth to the Indian spin bowling department and his recent impressive form will also benefit India.
Arshdeep Singh was part of India’s successful 2024 T20 World Cup-winning team, and he will be raring to do all of it once again. The Punjab Kings speedster had a terrific IPL 2025 season, taking 21 wickets from 17 matches.
The Indian top-order is stacked with stars and adding to that list is Yashasvi Jaiswal. The Rajasthan Royals batter scored 559 runs from 14 matches, scoring six fifties. He carried on that form to the England Tests, wherein he scored 411 runs from 10 innings, including two fifties and as many centuries.
Harshit Rana can come in to the Indian side as a backup option for the Asia Cup, especially if Jasprit Bumrah is unavailable. The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) pacer had a mediocre IPL 2025 season, taking 15 wickets from 13 matches.
Tilak Varma was the third highest run-getter for India in the T20I series against England, with 133 runs from five matches. That included just one half-century. In the IPL, Tilak scored 343 runs from 16 matches, and while his strike-rate of 138.30 wasn’t ideal, he still managed to produce a few vital cameos.
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