Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy worked in perfect harmony with the ball, taking between them five wickets, as India overwhelmed Bangladesh by 41 runs to secure a spot in the Asia Cup 2025 final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.
The win concluded Sri Lanka's tournament campaign, whereas Thursday's encounter between Pakistan and Bangladesh will now be a do-or-die battle to secure the other finalist.
India were asked to bat first after Bangladesh stand-in captain Jaker Ali decided to field, and they scored 168/6 on a difficult wicket. Abhishek Sharma's aggressive 75 from 37 balls was the highlight of the innings, which gave a searing launchpad.
The southpaw's whack not only got India's innings going but also took him over his mentor Yuvraj Singh's total for most Indian T20I knocks with five or more sixes. Abhishek is now on six such innings, behind only Rohit Sharma (13) and Suryakumar Yadav (9). He also entered the record books with 17 sixes in the 2025 edition, the most a player has had across formats in a single Asia Cup ever.
India's opening pair made the most of the Power-play, reaching 72/0 from six overs. Shubman Gill added a swift 29 off 19, while Abhishek was on a boundary-bashing spree. Even after Jaker Ali dropped a chance, Abhishek dominated until he was run out for 75 by Rishad Hossain.
That dismissal put a brake on India's pace. Shivam Dube, promoted to No. 3, could score just 2, with Suryakumar Yadav (5 off 11) and Tilak Varma (5) also finding it tough. Hardik Pandya stabilized the innings with a valuable 38 off 29 in the last overs, with Axar Patel scoring 10* off 15 balls.
India scored only 70 runs in the latter half of the innings. Rishad Hossain was impressive with 2/27 and a precise run-out, and Tanzim Hasan Sakib bowled figures of 1/29.
Kuldeep and Varun secure the victory
Chasing 169, Bangladesh struggled early on as Jasprit Bumrah, who returned to form after struggling against Pakistan, dismissed Tanzid Hasan. Bumrah's penetrative spell of 2-18 in four overs exerted immediate pressure.
Opener Saif Hassan kept Bangladesh's hopes in the match alive with a gritty 69 off 51 deliveries, living through three dropped catches—by Axar Patel (on 40), Shivam Dube (on 65), and Sanju Samson (on 66). He added 42 runs for the fifth wicket with Parvez Hossain Emon (21 off 19), but after Parvez was dismissed by Kuldeep Yadav, Bangladesh's innings started to derail.
Kuldeep was out of the world, coming back with returns of 3-18 that tore through the middle order. Varun Chakravarthy, after a poor beginning, recovered to pick 2-29, and Axar added a solitary wicket, that of Towhid Hridoy (7).
In spite of Saif's solitary stand, Bangladesh folded, 41 runs short as India went on to confidently enter the final.
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