Pakistan have named a fairly strong squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025. They have omitted veterans Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan and that has been the talk of the town.
Salman Ali Agha will be leading the side and the all-rounder will be playing a key role in the Asia Cup 2025. Ahead of the much-awaited competition, Pakistan will be playing a T20I Tri-Series with UAE and Afghanistan.
It will give them a lot of confidence and game practice in the slow and sluggish conditions of UAE.
In this article, we take a look at the strongest playing XI of Pakistan in the upcoming Asia Cup 2025:
Openers: Saim Ayub and Mohammad Haris
Saim Ayub and Mohammad Haris are the preferred openers of Mike Hesson and they are expected to once again open the innings for Pakistan in the upcoming Asia Cup 2025.
Ayub has played 36 T20Is and has mustered 705 runs. On the other hand, Haris has scored 391 runs in 23 T20Is.
Top-Order: Sahibzada Farhan, Hassan Nawaz, Khushdil Shah
Sahibzada Farhan is a very talented youngster of Pakistan and has the ability to perform well in high-pressure and high-octane situations. He scored 74 runs in 53 balls in the 3rd T20I between West Indies and Pakistan on 4th August 2025.
Hassan Nawaz and Khushdil Shah will be the other key players in the top-order for Pakistan.
Middle-Order: Faheem Ashraf, Salman Ali Agha
In case of a top-order collapse, the likes of Faheem Ashraf and Salman Ali Agha need to take up onus and perform well for the Men in Green. Agha will have to lead the team with perfection and commitment, intertwining both of them.
Bowlers: Hasan Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi
Pakistan should ideally go with their 3 senior pacers – Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali and Haris Rauf. All these 3 players have the experience of playing in pressure situations and can turn the game on its head.
Nawaz is a handy spinner and can bat in the lower order as well for Pakistan.
Pakistan’s Strongest Playing XI in Asia Cup 2025
Saim Ayub, Mohammad Haris, Sahibzada Farhan, Hassan Nawaz, Khushdil Shah, Faheem Ashraf, Salman Ali Agha, Hassan Ali, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Nawaz
Pakistan Squad for Asia Cup 2025 and UAE Tri-Series
Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Waseem Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Sufyan Moqim.
