&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "India vs UAE, Asia Cup 2025: Greener pitch in Dubai puts India's playing XI in selection dilemma")
India start their Asia Cup 2025 campaign against UAE in Dubai on Wednesday (Sep 10) and the pitch condition on a usually placid ground has left them with a couple of selection dilemma. India last played in UAE during the Champion Trophy 2025 and went on to win the tournament. Their matches in Champions Trophy were played shortly after domestic ILT20 league which had left the pitches a bit worn out. For the Asia Cup, pitches are greener in comparison which could force India to play an medium pace all-rounder at number eight.
India vs UAE, Asia Cup 2025 - Green pitch in Dubai
India bowling coach Morne Morkel, as reported by cricket news website ESPNCricinfo, expected the pitch at Dubai stadium being a bit greener than what they had played on in Champions Trophy. Morkel, however, said that they'll make the selection call on the match day.
"I think when the Champions Trophy was played at that time, there was a lot of cricket on the surfaces here and they looked a little bit tired," Morkel said. "Tonight [Monday] we will have a first look at the surface. And I believe there's quite a bit of a grass covering on the square. The venue is also under heat because of which match timing have been shifted 30 minutes and it might play role in pitch dying out.
India vs UAE, Asia Cup 2025 - India's Playing XI
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India have a couple of decision to make with regards for their playing XI for opening match of Asia Cup. With Shubman Gill back in the team as vice captain, he's expected to open the innings with Abhishek Sharma. Jitesh Sharma is expected to be the first choice wicketkeeper which means Sanju Samson might sit out. Here's India's predicted playing XI for the match:
India Predicted Playing XI vs UAE: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel/Shivam Dube, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy
