Asia Cup 2025: Ex-Pakistan star declares Suryakumar Yadav 'ineffective', drags Kohli-Rohit into debate

Former Pakistan National Cricket Team batsman Bazid Khan has shared his bold views on the 15-man squad of the India National Cricket Team for the Asia Cup 2025.

Bazid Khan said that the India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav has always been ineffective against Pakistan, and the team would surely miss the modern-day greats Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the continental tournament.

Look, all these players are high-class - Bazid Khan

Suryakumar Yadav will be leading India in the upcoming Asia Cup, and Shubman Gill has been named as his deputy. The team consists of the explosive batters like Abhishek Sharma, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, and Hardik Pandya, while Jasprit Bumrah will spearhead the bowling unit alongside the supremely talented Arshdeep Singh.

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In the spin department, India have the likes of Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, and Axar Patel, while Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma have been picked as two wicket-keeping options.

The BCCI selection committee has also picked Yashasvi Jaiswal, Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag, and Dhruv Jurel as the standbys, but there was no place for the likes of Mohammed Siraj, Shreyas Iyer, and Prasidh Krishna in the squad.

India will be playing a marquee tournament after a very long time in the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who have retired from T20I cricket, and Bazid Khan believes that the duo would be missed.

Speaking on PTV Sports, Bazid Khan stated that the Indian squad consists of 'high-class' players, but the experience and intensity of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are missing.

"Look, all these players are high-class. There isn’t anyone here you would say is not of that calibre. But the high intensity that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma brought to the game, that is something India will surely miss,” Bazid said, as quoted by TOI.

Against Pakistan, Suryakumar Yadav hasn’t been effective - Bazid Khan

Bazid Khan further stated that the India skipper Suryakumar Yadav doesn't have a good record against Pakistan and has always struggled, which is a big issue. He said:

“Suryakumar scores runs against almost everyone but somehow against Pakistan he hasn’t been effective. Whether it is the pace attack or some other reason, it remains an issue.”

The claim made by Bazid is somewhat correct, as the 34-year-old batsman has scored just 64 runs with a best of 18 and at an average of 12.80 and a strike rate of 118.51 in 5 innings against the Pakistan National Cricket Team in T20I cricket.

Jadeja was someone who really helped the team gel together - Bazid Khan

Other than Kohli and Rohit, Bazid opined that the Indian team would miss the veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja in the Asia Cup 2025.

The former Pakistan player said that Jadeja helped the team gel together and contributed in all three departments. He stated:

“People talk about Virat and Rohit, but Jadeja was someone who really helped the team gel together. Axar Patel is there, but Jadeja gave you balance as a batter, as a bowler, and above all, his fielding. In world cricket, Jadeja was among the top one or two fielders.”

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