The Asia Cup 2025 formally kicked off on Tuesday, September 9, with "Dark Horses" Afghanistan taking on minnows Oman in the curtain raiser at Abu Dhabi.
A day later now, India begin their title defence against hosts UAE at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai. The Men in Blue, on paper, are leaps and bounds ahead of not just UAE, but most of the participating teams in the competition.
The Men in Blue's performance in the white-ball format has been impeccable since 2024, having won the T20 World Cup in West Indies, followed by winning the Champions Trophy.
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In between, they have won multiple T20 bilateral series, including a thumping win over England earlier this year on home soil.
As India look to defend their Asia Cup title, former player Mohammad Kaif has named the best possible starting XI, as per him.
People are curious to see if Sansju Samson will make the cut in India's starting as Shubman Gill is part of the team as their vice-captain, he is all set to open the inning alongside fiery young batter Abhishek Sharma.
READ: Asia Cup 2025: India vs Pakistan tickets still available
Aakash Chopra leaves Sanju Samson out of India XI vs UAE
On X, Chopra shared his best possible India XI and then explained why he made the picks. He wrote: "No place for Samson because Gill is picked not just as a batter but as a VC. He plays. And that shuts the door for Sanju. No Kuldeep because modern-day T20 demands batting till 8. Dube steals the march over Rinku as he offers a bowling option and he was brilliant vs Eng anyway."
My Indian XI for the game vs the UAE
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) September 10, 2025
1. Abhishek
2. Gill
3. SKY
4. Tilak
5. Hardik
6. Jitesh
7. Dubey
8. Axar
9. Varun
10. Bumrah
11. Arshdeep
No place for Samson because Gill is picked not just as a batter but as a VC. He plays. And that shuts the door for Sanju.
No Kuldeep…
Aakash Chopra's India XI vs UAE
Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, SKY (c). Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Jitesh Sharma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh.
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