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India’s leading wicket-taker in T20Is did not make it to the playing eleven for T20 Asia Cup 2025 match against UAE on September 10. India went with only one frontline pacer in Jasprit Bumrah and two other pace-bowling options – Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube. While the conditions in Dubai were spin-friendly and India bowled out UAE for a paltry 57, former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is not happy with the current bowling combination. Ashwin feels Arshdeep Singh should be part of the team and he has been benched since head coach Gautam Gambhir took over.
"It's surprising that Arshdeep has been dropped, but it's not a new thing. Has been happening since Gautam Gambhir started coaching. Arshdeep did not play the entire Champions Trophy as well. It has been a bit of a theme. Maybe considering Dubai conditions, they are preferring spinners. When Gambhir won the title for KKR, he was also going all-out on spin,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
"This is the theme that we could see until the T20 World Cup. But I doubt this combination can work against a good team. It's quite risky. Arshdeep is a big performer. He was phenomenal in the World Cup against South Africa. To keep a man like that out for a very long time is going to be hard. I know Shivam Dube took a few wickets, but this is not a bowling combination I would be convinced with," the 38-year-old added.
Arshdeep hasn't played a match since the home white-ball series against England. He did not play in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Also, he did not get to make his Test debut on England soil in Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025.
Ashwin has backed Arshdeep’s inclusion in the playing eleven for the match against Pakistan on September 14. He feels that the left-arm pacer will be Suryakumar Yadav’s go-to bowler when other bowlers will be targetted.
"The rest of the bowlers will be targeted, so you need a good bowler to get through those overs. The World Cup looks a bit far away now. But you never know, if you can't fix these combinations... Arshdeep is high quality and you have to play him," he further added.
Arshdeep’s T20I record vs Pakistan
Arshdeep has a good record against Pakistan in T20Is. From four games, he has seven wickets against Pakistan at an average of 17.57. His economy rate against them is 7.25 runs per over.
The 26-year-old is India's leading wicket-taker in T20Is. From 63 T20Is, he has 99 wickets at an average of 18.30, including two four-fers.
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