India’s National Team XI for Asia Cup 2025: Samson v Jitesh, Rinku v Dube, who will be a part of the playing 11

Excitement is at it's peak among the hearts of Indian Cricket Team fans as the T20 Asia Cup is set to begin from the 9th of September onwards. The reigning champions captained by Suryakumar Yadav will open their campign in the tournament on September 10 versus the United Arab Emirates (UAE) led by Muhammad Waseem. UAE's team is not stronger than India but skipper Surya and coach Gautam Gambhir will definitely have many questions about the right playing 11. There's going to be a dilemma about certain players getting a spot in the starting 11. Let's take a look at them

Sanju Samson vs Jitesh Sharma

Wicket-keeper batter Sanju Samson prefers opening the innings, but vice-captain Shubman Gill has already taken that spot alongside hard - hitting opening batter Abhishek Sharma. Tilak Verma will most likely come into bat the number three spot, so Samson will have to play in the middle order, where he has less experience. On the contrary, Jitesh Sharma's role is that of a finisher and he performed brilliantly in the 2025 edition of the Indian Premier League where he played a crucial role in helping Royal Challengers Bangalore lift their maiden trophy.

Must Read - Asia Cup 2025: How has India performed at the two venues where the Asia Cup will take place? In this regard, Pakistan has the upper hand.

Taking the stats into consideration, Jitesh has a higher chance of donning the wicket-keeping gloves over Sanju since he has more experience than the latter in terms of playing the role of finishing off the innings. Now it remains to be seen whom Surya gives a chance between Jitesh & Samson.

Rinku Singh vs Shivam Dube

Only one of Rinku and Shivam Dube will get a chance to feature in the starting 11 to play the role of the finisher. The latter provides the aditional option of bowling along with batting, while Rinku recently gained form in UPT20 league 2025. However, Dube's all-round abilities can give him an edge, but the decision will be taken according to the Dubai pitch.

Will Bumrah get rest or...

Bumrah has not played a T20 International match for the Indian team since the conclusion of the 2024 ICC T20 Men's World Cup. It remains to be seen whether he gets a chance against UAE or he is directly seen against Pakistan. India has seam options in the form of Arshdeep Singh, Hardik Pandya and Harshit Rana to compensate for his absence

India's Asia Cup squad

Suryakumar Yadav (captain),, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dubey, Axar Patel, Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Verma, Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy

Standby players: Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel (wicketkeeper), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Prasidh Krishna, and Washington Sundar

Do Read - Just four Indian captains have hit centuries in Asia Cup's history, will Suryakumar Yadav write a new chapter?