India's 5 highest wicket-takers in the T20 men's Asia Cup ft. Hardik Pandya

Asia Cup 2025 will kick-off with a Group B match between Afghanistan and Hong Kong at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, September 9. The tournament is being held in the T20 format and is being viewed as a key preparation for the 2026 T20 World Cup to be played in India and Sri Lanka.

The latest tournament will be the 17th edition of the Asia Cup. So far, only two editions have been played in the T20 format, while all the others have been held in the ODI format. The tournament was played as a T20 event for the first time in 2016 in Bangladesh and for the second time in 2022 in the UAE.

Team India won the 2016 edition as they thumped hosts Bangladesh by eight wickets in the final in Mirpur. The Men in Blue, however, failed to reach the summit clash in 2022 as they struggled in the Super Four round. In the build-up to Asia Cup 2025, we look at India's five highest wicket-takers in the T20 men's Asia Cup.

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#3 Jasprit Bumrah, R Ashwin and Ashish Nehra

Pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Ashish Nehra and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin are joint-third on the list of Indian bowlers with most wickets in the T20 men's Asia Cup. All three have six wickets each in the tournament. While Ashwin and Nehra have retired from international cricket, Bumrah will get a chance to add to his tally during the upcoming edition in the UAE.

In five matches, Bumrah has picked up six wickets at an average of 15.66 and an economy rate of 5.22. The right-arm pacer's best of 2-27 came against Sri Lanka in Mirpur in the 2016 edition. He dismissed Shehan Jayasuriya and Chamara Kapugedera as India won the contest by five wickets.

Nehra claimed six wickets in four matches during the 2016 edition of the T20 men's Asia Cup. The left-arm pacer's scalps came at an average of 16.50 and an economy rate of 7.07. Nehra's best of 3-23 came against Bangladesh in Mirpur. He got rid of Mohammad Mithun, Mahmudullah and Mashrafe Mortaza as Team India registered a 45-run win.

Shifting focus to Ashwin, the seasoned off-spinner played six matches in the T20 men's Asia Cup and claimed six wickets at an average of 23.83 and an economy rate of 6.50. Ashwin's best of 2-26 came against Sri Lanka in Mirpur in 2016. He got the scalps of Milinda Siriwardana and Thisara Perera as the Men in Blue got the better of Sri Lanka by five wickets.

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#2 Hardik Pandya

All-rounder Hardik Pandya is second on the list of Indian bowlers with most wickets in the T20 men's Asia Cup. In eight matches, the right-arm pacer has picked up 11 wickets at an average of 18.81 and an economy rate of 7.01.

Hardik's best figures of 3-8 were registered against Pakistan in Mirpur in 2016. The pacer dismissed Shoaib Malik and added the scalps of Mohammad Sami and Mohammad Amir as India beat Pakistan by five wickets.

He also registered figures of 3-25 against the same opposition in Dubai in 2022. Pandya also smashed 33* off 17 as India won the exciting game by five wickets.

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#1 Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar is Team India's leading wicket-taker in the T20 men's Asia Cup. In six matches, the right-arm seamer has picked up 13 wickets at an average of 9.46 and an economy rate of 5.34. Bhuvneshwar has one five-fer and one four-fer to his credit.

Player	Matches	Wickets	Average	Economy	BBI	5w	4w
Bhuvneshwar Kumar	6	13	9.46	5.34	5-4	1	1
Hardik Pandya	8	11	18.81	7.01	3-8	0	0
R Ashwin	6	6	23.83	6.50	2-26	0	0
Jasprit Bumrah	5	6	15.66	5.22	2-27	0	0
Ashish Nehra	4	6	16.50	7.07	3-23	0	0

(India's 5 highest wicket-takers in the T20 men's Asia Cup)

Bhuvneshwar registered sensational figures of 5-4 from four overs against Afghanistan in Dubai in the Super Four clash of the 2022 edition. He dismissed Afghanistan openers Hazratullah Zazai and Rahmanullah Gurbaz in the first over and went on to add the scalps of Karim Janat, Najibullah Zadran and Azmatullah Omarzai. Chasing 213, Afghanistan were held to 111-8.

Bhuvneshwar also claimed 4-26 against Pakistan in the 2022 edition. He dismissed Babar Azam, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan and Naseem Shah in a brilliant display of bowling. Batting first, Pakistan were bowled out for 147, a total India surpassed with two balls to spare.