&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Asia Cup 2025: Abhishek Sharma, Hardik Pandya to miss final vs Pakistan? Here's what Indian bowling coach said")
India will cross roads with Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 final on Sunday (Sep 28) as they take on their arch-rivals at the Dubai International Stadium. The clash comes in less than 48 hours after India beat Sri Lanka in the final Super Four clash, where concerns were raised about the fitness of Hardik Pandya and Abhishek Sharma. However, Indian bowling coach Morne Morkel stated that they will assess the duo, having suffered cramps during the dead-rubber contest.
Abhishek, Hardik to miss Pakistan clash?
"Hardik, I know we'll assess sort of tonight and tomorrow morning and we'll make a call on that. Abhishek is fine," Morkel said after India won the Super Over. "Both of them were just struggling with cramps."
Hardik’s case comes as a major concern as he bowled only one over before being taken off during Sri Lanka’s batting. He was seen holding his left hamstring, clearly struggling to cope with the pain. Abhishek, India’s in-form batter in the Asia Cup 2025, was also seen leaving the field after 9.2 overs. Neither player did not returned to the field, meaning India had to fill in the void left by Hardik, who bowled three overs less.
Abhishek also missed the Super Over, where he would have been the obvious first choice, but captain Suryakumar Yadav joined Shubman Gill to chase a mere total of three runs.
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What is the current situation?
As things stand, nothing has been made clear with both players in contention to play the final. Saturday will be a crucial day for both players as they might undergo a fitness test before a call is taken. In case they both miss out, Jitesh Sharma or Shivam Dube could be drafted into the Playing XI, with Samson most likely to open alongside Shubman Gill.
