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The Asia Cup 2025 is looming large over the Indian team, and they are going to declare their squad for the forthcoming tournament on Tuesday, August 19. Various reports about various players have been coming on the internet, but world-renowned commentator Harsha Bhogle is one of the first to forecast an ideal team of the team India that needs to go to the United Arab Emirates for the 2025 version of the continental tournament. 

First and foremost, the expert batters on Bhogle's list are the likes of Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma — the number one and two ranked T20I batters in the world currently. Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav also makes it to the list, with his Mumbai teammate Shreyas Iyer also making it there. There was speculation regarding his inclusion in the tournament as he has been selected in the West Zone team for Duleep Trophy, but Bhogle thinks Iyer must go to the UAE. 

In the meantime, experienced opener Sanju Samson has also been picked by Bhogle in the team. He will open alongside Abhishek and will also be the preferred wicketkeeper. As a cover choice for Samson, the Hyderabad-born has also included the Bengaluru Royal Challengers stumper-batter Jitesh Sharma as an attacking option. Interestingly, Jitesh has been a part of the Indian T20I set-up for a long time now, and following a wonderful IPL with RCB, Bhogle has also included the Amravati-born in the setup. 

Read also: Suryakumar Yadav Cleared for Asia Cup 2025 After Fitness Test

Arriving at the all-rounders, his three selections were straightforward and direct, without any surprising exclusions. Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, and Washington Sundar are the three nominees nominated by Bhogle, which provides a lot of energy in the team. There is clearly a name missing in the shape of Nitish Kumar Reddy, however, the all-rounder has been recuperating from an injury he had picked up during the England tour, making his availability uncertain. 

A bowling attack is the most important component of a T20 team, and to ensure a good pace and spin balance from both ends, the 64-year-old has included Jasprit Bumrah to be witnessed in the upcoming multinational tournament. There have been several reports indicating that Bumrah can plan to rest himself in order to solve his workload crisis, but Bhogle feels that having the star pacer is the deciding factor for the Men in Blue's prospects in the tournament. 

The remaining bowlers in the team also comprise Arshdeep Singh India's leading wicket-taker in the format. The left-arm pacer will be the strike bowler if Bumrah fails to recover. Besides Arshdeep, Prasidh Krishna has been selected as the third specialist medium pacer. Among the spinners are Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi.

Suryakumar Yadav, Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Jitesh Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakravarthy