“Can he bowl six yorkers in six balls?” - Former cricketer raises concern over India’s fast-bowling options after Asia Cup 2025 win over UAE

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has raised concerns over the Men in Blue’s fast-bowling options following Arshdeep Singh’s exclusion from the Asia Cup 2025 game against the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The match was played on Wednesday, September 10, in Dubai.

Put into bat, UAE were bundled out for just 57 in 13.1 overs, with Kuldeep Yadav taking four wickets and Shivam Dube claiming three. In reply, India made light work of the chase, winning by nine wickets with 93 balls to spare.

Despite India’s commanding victory, Irfan Pathan questioned Arshdeep Singh’s omission. He noted that in a tricky knockout game, Jasprit Bumrah could bowl from one end, but the other end would still need to be managed. Speaking in a video on his YouTube channel, Pathan said:

“Look, Arshdeep is the highest wicket-taker in T20 cricket. If that guy doesn’t play, it’s obvious, he hasn’t played in England either. Okay, that makes sense there, but not playing here brings this scenario to my mind. If it’s a knockout match and Bumrah is bowling from one end, you can say with your eyes closed that he’s your best bowler. But if spin is operating from the other end, that’s fine, because you can handle three spinners and try to survive till the 16th or 17th over; the spin attack keeps coming.”

Pathan noted that in a challenging scenario, India would turn to Hardik Pandya, but questioned whether he could bowl six consecutive yorkers, something Arshdeep is capable of. Pathan remarked:

“But a situation arose where the ball is getting wet and not gripping. If you only have two fast bowlers, you count Shivam Dube as a medium pacer, but in a difficult situation, you’ll look for Hardik. But is Hardik’s strength bowling yorkers? Can he bowl six yorkers in six balls? His strengths are bowling into the pitch, bowling bouncers, and bowling hard lengths.”

“So if the game gets stuck in such a situation, how do you get out of it? That’s what needs to be seen. On a big field, you can still use bouncers, but when it comes to yorkers, you’ll definitely miss Arshdeep because he’s the kind of bowler we’ve seen in the World Cup, and regularly in T20 cricket, who can bowl yorkers for his team, even six yorkers in six balls. He can absolutely do that. So, that guy not being there, I think, today or tomorrow, because if you only have two fast bowlers, he can be missed,” he added.

Arshdeep Singh remains India’s highest wicket-taker in T20Is, with 99 scalps to his name in 63 matches.

---

“Best performance of his international career” - Irfan Pathan lauds India all-rounder for his spell against UAE

In the same video, Irfan Pathan praised Shivam Dube for his bowling performance. The all-rounder finished with figures of 3/4 in two overs. Pathan added that if Dube continues performing at this level, it will make the captain’s and team management’s job much easier. He said:

“Good thing was that Shivam Dube, as an all-rounder, got the best performance of his international career today. He took three wickets and bowled well. He looked in good rhythm. He got an LBW, a caught-behind, and a wicket off a slow run. You know, that catch by Suryakumar was excellent. So these were two big positives.”

“Because if Shivam Dube, as the sixth bowler, can come and bowl one or two overs effectively, it makes it much easier for the captain and the Indian team to manage the game. Seeing his confidence and “feel-good” factor was very encouraging. Of course, when a stronger team comes, things might change, the numbers might not remain the same, but it was very important for Shivam Dube to bowl regularly so that he can take wickets and be effective,” he added.

Shivam Dube has played 36 T20Is, scoring 531 runs with four fifties and claiming 16 wickets.