Reasons why Afghanistan has potential to win Asia Cup 2025 final

Afghanistan's win against Pakistan in the UAE Tri-Nation T20I series was a message for the teams who are preparing for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025. Over the last few years, from nowhere, Afghanistan emerged as one of the most promising teams in Asia. But do they have the potential to win the prestigious trophy?

Reasons why Afghanistan can win the Asia Cup 2025 title:

Suitable spin bowling for dry conditions: As the tournament is scheduled to take place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), spinners can take a crucial role from the beginning of the tournament. The Afghanistan cricket team, with multiple world-class spinners like Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmed, Mohammad Nabi, and Allah Ghazanfar, can be very effective in spin-friendly conditions. In a recent T20I match, when Afghanistan outclassed Pakistan, the match was mostly driven by the Afghan spinners. 

Balanced squad: The basic step to form a formidable force is to set a balanced squad. On pen and paper, Afghanistan's squad is looking very balanced. They have highly experienced players like Nabi and emerging talents like Noor and Rahmanullah Gurbaz; to bridge between experienced and young talents, they have Rashid Khan as the leader of the troop. All-rounders such as Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Karim Janat, and Gulbadin Naib help to maintain balance and flexibility in the team. 

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Recent Momentum: Under coach Jonathan Trott, Afghanistan surprised the cricket world on multiple occasions. They reached the semi-final of the 2024 T20 World Cup, and they looked strong during the 2023 ODI World Cup as well. Due to the Indian Premier League (IPL) and exposures from multiple high-caliber T20 franchise leagues, Afghan cricketers got the chance to play with some of the top names of the game, which helped them to grow a lot better as cricketers. 

Afghanistan Asia Cup 2025 squad

Rashid Khan (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Darwish Rasooli, Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Karim Janat, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mohammad Ishaq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Allah Ghazanfar, Noor Ahmad, Farid Malik, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi