Irfan Pathan, a former all-rounder, thinks this combination might not stand up against more formidable opposition later in the tournament, even if it performed well against the UAE’s young batting order. India’s first bowler, Hardik, finished just one over while giving up ten runs. Hardik can play the part of a death-bowling option well, but Pathan questioned how India could wind up missing Arshdeep in stressful situations.
India defeated the United Arab Emirates by a commanding nine wickets in Dubai to start their Asia Cup 2025 campaign. However, great bowler Arshdeep Singh was not included in the playing XI by the Men in Blue. Known as one of the world’s top death bowlers and India’s top wicket-taker in Twenty20 Internationals, Arshdeep was not included in the starting lineup. Instead, India selected Jasprit Bumrah as their only front-line bowler, with Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube providing assistance.
“Arshdeep takes the most wickets in Twenty20 Internationals. It does draw attention if he doesn’t play. He didn’t play in England (Test), which makes sense, but the fact that he didn’t play here makes me imagine that Bumrah will bowl from one end in a knockout scenario—and he will, of course, since he is our greatest bowler. On the other hand, it’s okay if spinners enter the game because you will be using three spinners and the influence of the spin will last until the fifteenth or sixteenth over. However, it gets difficult if the ball becomes difficult to handle due to dampness.
This is because Shivam Dube, who offers you a fast-bowling option, will undoubtedly be included if you only play two pacers. However, you will pick Hardik Pandya over Dube when things get rough. But is Hardik a yorker in terms of strength? In an over, is he able to bowl six yorkers? His primary strengths are hard length bowling, bouncer bowling, and pitching into the pitch.
What will be the solution if the game becomes stuck in that state? It will be fantastic to witness. You can still utilise bouncers, of course, if you’re playing on a large pitch, but you’ll miss Arshdeep if we talk about yorkers. He demonstrated his ability to execute six yorkers in an over flawlessly at the T20 World Cup, IPL, and other T20Is.
Since there will only be two fast bowlers playing today and tomorrow, he will undoubtedly be missed,” Irfan Pathan posted on his YouTube account.
View the video below:
View this post on Instagram
Shivam Dube (3/4) and Kuldeep Yadav (4/7) swept through the UAE’s batting order throughout the match, dismissing them for just 57 in 13.1 overs. In addition, Bumrah picked up the first wicket with a precise yorker. With Shubman Gill contributing an undefeated 20 and Abhishek Sharma hitting 30 off 16 balls, the chase was finished in just 4.3 overs.
India
