Unusual Travel Plan Marks India’s Asia Cup 2025 Preparation

The Men in Blue’s next assignment begins on September 10 with a Group A clash against hosts United Arab Emirates at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai. However, an unusual landing in a host country for the T20 Asia Cup 2025, starting on September 9, has bothered some cricket experts and opinion makers. 

The Indian squad, containing 15 members including captain Suryakumar Yadav, will gather in Dubai on September 4. Unlike traditional departure rules for an ICC multilateral event or bilateral series to take a flight together, preferably from Mumbai, all team players will fly to the destination from their current locations. This bizarre choice is backed by prioritising logistics and the convenience instead of all players reaching to Mumbai.

As of now, Asia Cup participants Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh are active in the Duleep Trophy 2025. According to a report, with logistical factors, the flexible reporting is granted to all players who are expected to be in Dubai by September 4. The first net practice session will be unlocked on September 5 at the prestigious ICC Academy. 

In this non-traditional arrangement, a few players will depart from Mumbai. It is not logical to tell some players to arrive in Mumbai first before taking a flight to Dubai. In this context, it is relatively less time-consuming to reach Dubai in comparison to other overseas flights. 

After the first match against the UAE, India will gear up for a highly debatable clash against Pakistan after the approval granted by the government of India, citing it as a part of a multilateral tournament and a neutral venue clash. On September 19, India will face Oman prior to the Super Four Stage.

India’s Matches in Asia Cup 2025 (Group Stage)