India's best possible starting XI for Asia Cup 2018

The Asia Cup is one of the best tournaments for the Asian teams and it will start on 15th September. In fact, the Asia Cup was held two years ago in Bangladesh and India won the title. The last Asia Cup was in T20 format, but it will be an ODI Cricket tournament this year. Additionally, six Asian teams are participating in the tournament. The participant teams are India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and the winner of Asia Cup qualifier.

The tournament is less than one month away and all the teams are preparing for the mega tournament. The Men in Blue are the defending champions and they will be determined to defend the title successfully. The tournament will be held in the UAE and it will be the 14th edition of the Asia Cup.

Currently, the Indian team is in England for a Test series and they are set to play the Asia Cup after the ongoing Test series. Meanwhile, India are the second-ranked ODI team in the world and they have several top-notch players in the limited overs Cricket.

The selectors will probably send a full-strength Indian squad because the Asia Cup is a major tournament.

Here we discuss India's the best possible starting eleven for the Asia Cup next month:

Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan

Dhawan is a regular member of India's limited overs squad and he is certainly going to play the Asia Cup. In fact, he was the man of the match of Asia Cup final in 2016. He scored a handy 60 runs in the Final and helped India to win the title. Moreover, Dhawan has a history of scoring big runs in the major tournaments. Therefore, he is expected to do well in the Asia Cup.

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma

Dhawan's opening partner Rohit Sharma is an essential player of the Indian team in the limited overs Cricket. Moreover, Rohit is one of the best ODI Cricketers in the world and he is going to play a crucial role in the tournament. In all honesty, if India want to win the title for the seventh time, then he needs to fire with the bat.

In addition, Rohit's ODI record is noteworthy. He has scored 6730 runs in his ODI career and he has an average of 45. Hence, his track record shows his importance in the team.

Virat Kohli

Captain Kohli

The Indian skipper Virat Kohli is definitely the backbone of the Indian team. In fact, he has been scoring a lot of runs in the ongoing Test series against England and he will be determined to continue his good batting in the Asia Cup.

Presently, Kohli is undoubtedly the best ODI batsman. As a matter of fact, he has 9779 ODI runs with an average of 58. Additionally, he is the number one ranked ODI batsman in the world now and he will be aiming to prove his worth in the Asia Cup.

KL Rahul

KL Rahul

KL Rahul is one of the best players of the Indian team and he has done well as a middle-order batsman. Meanwhile, his IPL form was magnificent this year and he was the top run scorer for the Kings XI Punjab. In fact, he scored the fastest half-century of the IPL this year.

Hence, his batting form will be indispensable for the Men in Blue. Additionally, he is a reliable batsman who can score plenty of runs in the middle order.

Ambati Rayadu

Ambati Rayadu

Ambati Rayadu is certainly a top-notch player who can bat at the number five position. As a matter of fact, Rayadu was selected for the England tour, but he could not pass the fitness test. However, he worked on his fitness level and passed the fitness test recently. Hence, there is a gigantic possibility that the selectors will pick him for the Asia Cup.

Meanwhile, Rayadu scored a lot of runs in IPL this season. He scored 602 runs for the Chennai Super Kings. Therefore, if he gets picked for the Asia Cup then India has a bright chance to defend the title successfully.

MS Dhoni

MSD

Dhoni is India's most dependable lower order batsman and he is a prime member of the Indian team. The former Indian captain retired from the Test Cricket but he is still an awe-inspiring player in the limited overs Cricket. Moreover, he is still the most reliable finisher of the Indian team and he will be aiming to do well in the Asia Cup.

Hardik Pandya

Hardik Pandya

Hardik Pandya has been a regular member of the Indian team in every format. The 24-year all-rounder is expected to play in an important role in the Asia Cup, both with the bat and the ball.

Meanwhile, he is a great lower order batsman who can play big shots. Besides, he is an adept pace bowler who can take wickets at regular intervals.

Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav

The Chinaman is an impressive performer with the ball and he has been a regular starter for the Men in Blue. In fact, Kuldeep has an awesome track record in the limited overs Cricket. He has 45 ODI wickets in just 21 matches and he has a bowling average of 17.91. Moreover, his performance was noteworthy in the recent ODI series against England.

Yuzvendra Chahal

Yuzvendra Chahal

The pair of Chahal and Kuldeep has troubled several batsmen in last one year. As a matter of fact, both of them are wrist spinners and they can unsettle top-notch batsmen. Similarly, Chahal has taken 45 ODI wickets in 25 matches and he has an average of 22.96. Hence, he will play an important role in the spin-friendly pitches of UAE.

Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah

Bumrah is the backbone of the Indian bowling unit and he has been an indispensable part of India's limited-overs squad in the last two years. The 24-year is the number one ranked ODI bowler in the world. Meanwhile, he has taken 64 ODI wickets in 37 matches. Therefore, he will be an essential member of the Indian team in the Asia Cup.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar is recovering from a lower back injury, but he is expected to be ready for the Asia Cup. Likewise, Kumar is also an integral part of India in every format. Therefore, he can form a formidable bowling attack with Bumrah. He is adept at swinging the ball in both ways. Therefore, if he gets selected for the Asia Cup then he will certainly bother the opposition batsmen.