Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has stirred debate in the cricketing world by questioning the very competitiveness of the Asia Cup. Arguing that India face little challenge within the continent, he proposed bringing in African teams and even rebranding the tournament as an “Afro-Asia Cup” to rekindle excitement among fans.
Speaking on his YouTube channel ahead of India’s Asia Cup 2025 opener against the UAE, Ashwin did not mince words about what he sees as the event’s diminishing charm.
According to him, there is hardly a team in Asia capable of beating India. He said. “How are these teams going to even compete?”
India’s dominance is undeniable: they have lifted the trophy eight times, including three of the last four editions. Ashwin himself admitted that for the sake of competition, he would prefer to see another champion emerge. “In a way, I really hope someone else wins the tournament. Because only then will there be a contest in Asia,” he remarked.
Even Afghanistan’s emphatic victory over Hong Kong in Tuesday’s curtain-raiser failed to impress him. While acknowledging Afghanistan’s bowlers as potential threats, he dismissed their batting depth: “Even against the so-called threat of the Afghanistan bowlers, if India bat well and score 170+, who will Afghanistan chase this down with? It’s nearly impossible.”
Bangladesh fared even worse in his assessment. Once a team known for spirited performances, they no longer merited serious mention in Ashwin’s eyes. “We’ve not even spoken about Bangladesh,” he said, “Because there is nothing to talk about with them.”
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The statistics back his argument. India enter the tournament riding the momentum of 17 wins in their last 20 T20Is since clinching the 2024 T20 World Cup. Armed with a deep batting lineup and spinners like Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy, Ashwin believes the team is virtually untouchable.
“None of these teams pick Kuldeep or Varun. And we’ve not even spoken about India’s powerful batting line-up, which has match-winners galore.”
For Ashwin, the solution lies in broadening the tournament’s horizons. “They can almost include a South Africa and make it an Afro-Asia Cup to make the tournament competitive.” he suggested. He even floated the idea of fielding an India A side to create at least some semblance of a contest.
Wrapping up his assessment of India’s rivals, Ashwin noted that the only realistic path to victory against India is to limit them to a modest total and then hope to chase it down. Otherwise, even the inherently thrilling format of T20 could turn into a one-sided affair in this Asia Cup.