NEW DELHI: India will get their Asia Cup campaign underway against hosts UAE at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, as they eye a record-extending ninth continental title, having won seven in ODIs and once in T20Is.
India, who boast a brilliant record of 24 wins and three defeats since their T20 World Cup victory last year, are the clear favourites in the eight-team tournament.
What Suryakumar said ahead of opener
At the pre-match press conference, India captain Suryakumar Yadav spoke about the challenge of facing UAE while also stressing the advantage of having multiple part-time bowling options in the squad.
"They (UAE) play an exciting brand of cricket. Recently they came very, very close against strong teams. We are really excited to play them," he said.
On India's depth, he added: "We don't want to rely too much on part-timers, but when a top or middle-order batter gives you an extra over, it's always good for the captain. On slow pitches, that flexibility can be crucial."
Head-to-head: India vs UAE
Both teams have faced each other just once in T20Is, in the 2016 Asia Cup, where India emerged victorious while chasing a meagre target of 82.
Match details
Date: September 10, Wednesday
Time: 8:00 PM IST / 6:30 PM local
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium
Live on: Sony Sports Network, SonyLIV
Squads
India: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson (WK), Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh.
UAE: Muhammad Waseem (C), Alishan Sharafu, Aryansh Sharma, Asif Khan, Dhruv Parashar, Ethan D’Souza, Haider Ali, Harshit Kaushik, Junaid Siddique, Matiullah Khan, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Zohaib, Rahul Chopra, Rohid Khan, Simranjeet Singh, Saghir Khan.
