Asia’s premier cricket tournament, the Asia Cup, is set to hold its 2025 edition in the month of September. The tournament will be played at a much bigger scale this season, with a total of eight participating teams set to feature in the Asia Cup 2025 edition.
The Asia Cup 2025 edition will be played in T20 format to help the teams prepare for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2026 to be played in India and Sri Lanka. The tournament will feature the five full members of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and three emerging nations who qualified for the tournament through the ACC Men’s Premier Cup in 2024.
India has been granted the hosting rights for the tournament. However, according to multiple reports, the tournament could be entirely played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) following the recent tensions between India and Pakistan. We take a look at all the participating teams in the Asia Cup 2025 below.
Asia Cup 2025 Teams
The tournament will feature the five full members of the ACC – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, Oman, Hong Kong, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have qualified for the tournament as they finished in the top three places in the ACC Men’s Premier Cup 2024.
| Tournament | Asia Cup 2025 |
| Host | India (Potentially likely to be shifted to Dubai, UAE) |
| Teams | 8 |
| Qualified Teams | Full Members – India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan ACC Men’s Premier Cup – Oman, Hong Kong, United Arab Emirates (UAE) |
| Format | T20 International |
| Group Stage | 2 Groups of 4 Teams Each |
| First Match | To be announced |
| Final | To be announced |
| Venue | Multiple Venues Across India (Potentially likely to be shifted to Dubai, UAE) |
India
The Indian cricket team is the most successful team in the history of the Asia Cup, having won the tournament a total of 8 times. They are also the defending champions, having won the 2023 edition.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka cricket is the second most successful team in the history of the Asia Cup. They have won the tournament a total of 6 times. Their most recent success dates back to 2022, when they beat Pakistan in the final.
Pakistan
Pakistan has won the tournament a total of two times and finished runners-up on multiple occasions. Their two successes came in 2000 and the most recent was back in 2012 when they beat Bangladesh in the final.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh has been featuring in the tournament for several years and decades, yet they have never won the Asia Cup. Their best finish has been runners-up in 2012, 2016, and 2018.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan is one of the latest entrants in the Asia Cup. They made their first appearance in the tournament in 2014, and their best performance has been reaching the Super Four on two occasions in 2018 and 2022.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong cricket team made their first Asia Cup appearance in the year 2004. However, they haven’t yet passed the group stage mark of the tournament.
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) also made its first appearance in the ACC Asia Cup in 2004. Since then, they have featured in three editions and couldn’t get past the group stage.
Oman
It will be a historic moment for the Oman cricket team as they will be appearing in the Asia Cup for the first time in 2025.
Will Team India Play in the Asia Cup 2025?
There is still some uncertainty about the Indian team’s participation in the tournament. After India’s ‘Operation Sindoor’, various reports stated that Team India would not engage in any cricketing action against Pakistan. This was a big blow given that India vs Pakistan is the biggest match in the Asia Cup.
However, despite multiple reports citing India’s unlikelihood of participating in the Asia Cup 2025, Sony Sports Network, the official broadcaster of the tournament, launched a promotional video featuring India’s T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav, which sparked plenty of debate on the likelihood of India playing the Asia Cup 2025.
As per an India Today report, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has written an email to the BCCI to finalize the schedule for the Asia Cup 2025. So, it seems very likely that Team India will feature in the tournament, which is most likely to be shifted to Dubai, UAE.
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