UAE to Inaugurate Asia Cup 2025 Campaign Against India on September 10

DUBAI: Muhammad Waseem, the captain of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) squad, conveyed his firm belief on Tuesday regarding his team’s potential to surprise either Pakistan or India during the forthcoming ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2025, which is slated to occur from September 9 to 28.

During the captains’ press gathering at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, held shortly before the opening match between Afghanistan and Hong Kong, Waseem mentioned their goal of securing a Super 4s spot by defeating Oman and one of the prominent teams, Pakistan or India.

“We are definitely capable of causing an upset against either India or Pakistan,” Waseem stated confidently.

He further added, “We have the ability to triumph over Oman, and we will concentrate on defeating one of these two major teams to advance to the Super Four stage.”

Notably, the UAE is positioned in Group A, alongside former champions Pakistan and India, as well as Oman, who are making their first appearance in this prestigious continental competition.

The team, led by Waseem, is set to commence their Asia Cup 2025 journey with a match against India. Subsequently, they will face Oman in the afternoon match of a double-header event scheduled for September 15.

In their concluding group-stage encounter, the UAE will compete against Pakistan on September 17.

The nation recently played host to Pakistan and Afghanistan in a T20I tri-series, which acted as a preparatory event for the imminent tournament.

The host team experienced defeat in all four matches of the tri-nation series, leading to their placement at the bottom of the table.

UAE squad for Asia Cup 2025: Muhammad Waseem (c), Alishan Sharafu, Aryansh Sharma (wk), Asif Khan, Dhruv Parashar, Ethan D’Souza, Haider Ali, Harshit Kaushik, Junaid Siddique, Matiullah Khan, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Zohaib, Rahul Chopra (wk), Rohid Khan, Simranjeet Singh and Saghir Khan.