Aakash Chopra, a former player for India, has stated that the Men in Blue’s 2025 Asia Cup matchup with the United Arab Emirates was a mismatch. The entire game was shorter than a T20 innings, he noted.
On Wednesday, September 10, in a Group A match, in Dubai, India requested the UAE to be batting first and dismissed them on 57 in 13.1 overs. Suryakumar Yadav and his companions achieved the target in only 4.3 overs with only a single wicket lost.
The India opener in the past highlighted the fact that the winning champs decimated the United Arab Emirates in a video that he shared in his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra.
“It wasn’t a match, it was a mismatch because the UAE challenge was totally dismissed. It was being said that it’s a T20 match, but the two teams together played 17.4 overs. The match ended and India won.”
Aakash Chopra
Chopra questioned the UAE captain for handing Haider Ali the opening over, pointing out that Shubman Gill was even more dominant than Abhishek Sharma.
“There was one question before this match for sure as to how Shubman Gill would play, would he run at the speed Abhishek Sharma runs? He ran even faster than him, although Abhishek Sharma hit a six off the first ball, and I am wondering who bowls a left-arm spinner when a left-hander is facing.”
Aakash Chopra
“It’s like sending a lamb to the slaughterhouse. He hit sixes and showed intent. The match (innings) lasted only 4.3 overs. Shubman Gill remained unbeaten and Suryakumar Yadav came and hit a six off his first ball. This was as dominating as it could get.”
Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra hails Kuldeep Yadav’s stunning comeback vs UAE in Asia Cup 2025
In the same video, Aakash Chopra reflected on India’s bowling and commended Kuldeep Yadav for his powerful spell.
“Kuldeep Yadav’s comeback was incredible – four wickets. He bowled just 2.1 overs. He was picking up wickets whenever he bowled, and you wonder how fantastic the combination of Kuldeep and Varun Chakaravarthy is. Since Kuldeep Yadav hadn’t been playing for such a long time, people have forgotten the kind of form he is in.”
Aakash Chopra
According to the expert, the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy should have featured a left-arm wrist-spinner.
“He didn’t play in England, but he was doing well in the IPL. He plays for a franchise that plays in tiny grounds, either in Vizag or the Arun Jaitley Stadium. He is releasing the ball very well, but no one is playing him. He should have been played in England, but you didn’t play him a single match.”
Aakash Chopra
Chopra clarified, though, that he would not evaluate Kuldeep on the basis of his performance against the UAE.
“However, how much will you read into it? Will you clap when a university student tells the tables of two, three and four when you ask him to do so? The opposing team’s situation was very bad. It’s not the player’s mistake. If someone plays ordinary cricket against you, it is not your problem. However, you and I should not read too much into it,” he elaborated.
In the 2025 Asia Cup match against the United Arab Emirates, Kuldeep Yadav was 4/7 in 2.1 overs in India. Varun Chakaravarthy, Axar Patel, and Jasprit Bumrah claimed one dismissal each and Shivam Dube claimed three wickets.
