3 India players who may not play a single match in 2025 Asia Cup ft. Sanju Samson

India's squad for the 2025 Asia Cup was recently announced. The tournament is set to begin on September 9. The Men in Blue will be led by Suryakumar Yadav, who retained his spot as captain. Notably, Shubman Gill returned to the T20I fold and has been named vice-captain for the tournament.

India are placed in Group A alongside Oman, Pakistan, and the UAE. The Men in Blue are set to play their first game against the UAE on September 10. They will then face arch-rivals Pakistan on the 14th, followed by the game against Oman on the 19th. The Super Four stage is set to begin on September 20, with the final scheduled to be held on September 28.

The Indian team announced a 15-member squad with five additional players in the standby list. Despite all the players being talented, there may be a few who could end up warming the bench throughout the tournament.

That said, here are three Indian players who may not play a single game in the 2025 Asia Cup.

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#3 Harshit Rana

2025 IPL - Kolkata Knight Riders v Punjab Kings - Source: Getty

Pacer Harshit Rana has been included in India's 15-member squad for the 2025 Asia Cup. The team management faced criticism over his inclusion as the pacer has played very little international and domestic cricket.

Harshit has played two Tests, five ODIs, and a lone T20I so far. Overall, he has picked up 17 wickets across all formats. While he bagged 15 wickets from 13 matches in IPL 2025, his economy of 10.18 was on the higher side.

Notably, ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh are also in the 15-member squad. With the presence of these two quicks, Harshit might not get a single game in the tournament. Bumrah and Arshdeep have been great performers in T20Is and are most likely to start in the playing 11.

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#2 Kuldeep Yadav

2025 IPL - Punjab Kings v Delhi Capitals - Source: Getty

Wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav also found a place in India's 2025 Asia Cup squad. He had a decent IPL 2025, where he bagged 15 wickets from 13 innings. Kuldeep played a crucial role in the 2024 T20 World Cup as well. He picked up 10 wickets from five games at an average of 13.90 and a strike-rate of 12.

The wrist-spinner has featured in 40 T20Is and has 69 wickets at an average of 14.07 and an economy rate of 6.77. Despite his stellar numbers, it could be possible that Kuldeep might not play a single 2025 Asia Cup match.

All-rounder Axar Patel and Varun Chakaravarthy could be the two spinners alongside all-rounder Shivam Dube, leaving no place for Kuldeep. The Indian team benched the wrist-spinner during the entire recent Test series against England to maintain batting depth. It may once again be the case, should they prefer to increase the batting and compromise on a genuine bowler.

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#1 Sanju Samson

2025 IPL - Rajasthan Royals v Punjab Kings - Source: Getty

Wicketkeeper batter Sanju Samson could once again find himself at a crossroads. In recent times, Samson has opened the batting with Abhishek Sharma in T20Is. As an opener, the right-hander has scored 522 runs from 17 matches at an average of 32.63 and a strike-rate of 178.77 with three hundreds.

However, Shubman Gill's return, particularly as vice-captain, could make it difficult for Sanju Samson to find a spot in the playing 11. Gill would certainly open the batting while Abhishek, being a left-hander, would hold on to his spot as well. Samson has batted in the lower order, but Jitesh Sharma, the second wicketkeeper in the squad, could be a better option as a finisher at the moment.

Therefore, Samson may have to sit out once again. Notably, he was a part of India's 2024 T20 World Cup-winning squad but did not get a single game.