Almost every team in the competition has quality openers.
The upcoming Asia Cup 2025 will have several quality openers who have played an attacking brand of cricket lately. They have exploited the field restrictions early on and shown the ability to bat deep by weaving big knocks. It’s not limited to big teams; almost every team in the competition has quality openers.
If the likes of Abhishek Sharma and Saim Ayub hogged headlines, Anshuman Rath and Muhammad Waseem silently did their jobs. Hence, the upcoming tournament will be an opportunity for all to showcase their superior skill sets again. A lot will depend on how the openers perform, given that the new ball might be slightly easier to bat in the UAE conditions.
Among all teams participating in the competition, 24 active batters have opened the innings at least 10 times. Alishan Sharafu has the highest average (50.91), followed by Anshuman Rath (41.42) and Muhammad Waseem (37.03). But most of those innings come against lower-ranked teams, even though that’s not their fault.
Additionally, Sharafu doesn’t open the innings now; he last did in 2024. Abhishek Sharma has the fifth-best average (36.50), followed by Pathum Nissanka (36) and Sanju Samson (34.75). However, when it comes to the scoring rate, Abhishek leaps all other batters.
Among all openers worldwide with at least 10 innings since 2024, he has the highest strike rate (199.60), and he hits a boundary every 3.04 deliveries. Of the Asia Cup 2025 teams, Naseem Khushi (189.75) and Sanju Samson (182.89) are second and third on the fastest-scorers list. Muhammad Waseem (160.35), Parvez Hossain Emon (156.46), and Zeeshan Ali (152.61) are other openers with a 150+ strike rate in this timeframe.
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After dropping Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, Pakistan have given an extended run to Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan in T20Is. To their credit, the two have done relatively well. They have batted with more intent than the previous duo and shown the ability to score runs consistently.
Since 2024, Ayub has 634 runs at an average of 24.38 and a strike rate of 139.95 in 28 innings, including four fifties, as an opener. Meanwhile, Farhan has accumulated 279 runs at an average of 25.36 and a 146.07 strike rate in 11 outings, comprising three half-centuries. While they have not been as consistent as others in the list, the opening pair has maintained a higher strike rate, which is noticeable.
It’s also about the conditions they have played in, which have not allowed them or other batters to score as freely, and they have still maintained a high strike rate. For instance, Farhan’s strike rate as an opener stands at 146.07, while other openers in the matches he opened have collectively struck at 136.48. In Ayub’s case, others have scored marginally quicker (141.88) than he (139.95) did, but the difference is minute.
That’s the approach Pakistan have adopted. They want to maximise the powerplay, even if that comes at the cost of losing a few wickets. So, while the duo can be a bit more consistent, the scoring rate has been right up there.
One name that has been common among the best-performing openers across formats since last year is Pathum Nissanka. The Sri Lankan batter is among the finest all-format openers and has improved massively. While the improvement has been across formats, the T20I format has seen the most encouraging change, which was not his strong suit.
In the initial three years, Nissanka scored 1059 runs at a tepid average of 27.15 and a 112.06 strike rate in 40 innings, including nine fifties as an opener. However, he has 756 runs at 36 and a 138.71 strike rate in 23 outings, including five half-centuries, since 2024. A surge in average and strike rate simultaneously shows he has found a way to score runs more consistently and quickly.
Since 2024, no other batter from Sri Lanka has scored more runs than Nissanka. Among all his teammates with at least 10 T20I innings, his average and strike rate are second and third-best, respectively. He is easily among the finest openers in world cricket at the moment.
As mentioned above, Abhishek Sharma is the quickest opener in world cricket. But he has combined it with consistency, which makes him a standout name. He is the only opener to average more than 35 and strike above 180 since 2024.
Even in the powerplay, no one has been quicker than him. Among all batters with at least 70 balls in this phase, Abhishek has the third-best strike rate (179.16). Then, his spin game is easily the finest among all openers in world cricket.
Since 2024, Abhishek has had a marvellous strike rate of 208.69 and a balls-per-boundary ratio of 3.06 against spinners in T20Is. His superior spin expertise will be vital in the UAE, where spinners always have more assistance. That makes him the best among all the options in the Asia Cup 2025.
Note: Only batters expected to open in the Asia Cup 2025 are considered.
