Former India cricketer and 1983 World Cup winner Madan Lal picked the Men in Blue's opening pair for Asia Cup 2025. Though at first it looked like Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma will be the ones to open the batting, Shubman Gill's inclusion in the squad has spiced things up. There are now three players that are in contention to fulfill the role of opening batters for the continental tournament.
Though Samson did give some fine performances with the bat while opening the innings for India last year in T20Is, Madan feels that Abhishek and Gill should be the ones to open for the Men in Blue in th upcoming tournament. The former seamer highlighted how both of them have explosive strike-rates and can massively help the side in starting their innings on strong notes.
"I'm satisfied because it should have been done. Abhishek Sharma's strike rate is more than 225, and Shubman Gill's strike rate is more than 150. Opening is very important in T20Is. In the first six overs, the openers set the game. Then, after that, you have to ensure that your average is around 7, 8, or 9 and continue until the 14th or 16th over. In the last three to four overs, you have a big hitter like Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel," Madan told ANI.
Spinners likely to play a massive role
Madan further highlighted the importance of spinners for Asia Cup. The tournament will be held in UAE and the conditions in the country are likely top favour a turner more than a pacer. The former cricketer remarked that if India manage to get an early breakthrough, then the spinners can prove to be very effective during the middle overs.
"It's very hot here. Spinner's role will always be more crucial here. It's very hot, but the thing is to get the breakthrough early on, and then the spinner comes in. We have the best spinner in the world. If we get a breakthrough in the beginning, then the spinners can be very lethal, and they can do a wonderful job. Spinners will play a big role. Afghanistan has four spinners and Pakistan has three. Most of the countries depend on the spinners," Madan stated.
Meanwhile, India will begin their Asia Cup campaign with the clash against UAE on September 10 before locking horns against arch-rivals Pakistan on September 14. Their group stage will come to a conclusion with the match against Oman on September 19. The Men in Blue thead into the competition as the favourites and will be aiming to win a record ninth Asia Cup title in their history.