Asia Cup 2025: India’s World Cup winner urges for Kuldeep Yadav’s selection in playing XI

Former Indian cricketer and World Cup-winning cricketer Madan Lal has urged for inclusion of Kuldeep Yadav in the playing XI, thanks to his unique bowling style, as it would be difficult to counter in the shortest format of the game.

Notably, Kuldeep Yadav couldn’t make it to the playing XI in all five Tests against England in the recently concluded Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. His last international game came against New Zealand in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 grand finale.

"Kuldeep Yadav should be included in the team due to his unique bowling style, which is difficult to counter in T20 cricket, though the final decision depends on the wicket conditions and team combination. Two spinners and three pace bowlers should be included in Dubai,” Madan Lal told ANI.

Furthermore, Madan Lal also felt that apart from India, Afghanistan are also turning out to be a strong contender to do well in the forthcoming Asia Cup 2025 campaign. On the other hand, he questioned Pakistan’s confidence levels.

"India is a strong favourite due to their skilled team. The unpredictability of the T20 format and the performances of Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan — noting that Afghanistan is currently playing well,” Madan Lal told ANI.

“There is controversy over the team combination, particularly the exclusion of Shreyas Iyer, with selections often decided by selectors and coaches. Afghanistan is seen as a potential challenger to Pakistan, whose current performance and confidence levels are questioned. Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan are considered strong contenders," he added.

India’s squad for Asia Cup: Surya Kumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson (WK), Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh.

Standby players: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel.

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