The Asia Cup 2025 has entered its business end with India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh qualifying for the Super Fours stage. In the ongoing edition,
the way the captains of India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka have approached the tournament has been interesting to see. Each of them has brought a different style of leadership, changing the narrative of their respective teams in different ways.
All these captains have been successful in taking them to this stage of the tournament, but are hoping to take the things a step further by helping them reach the final and possibly hold the coveted title.
Here is the comparison of the captains of India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka:
3. Salman Agha: Pakistan
Pakistan’s Asia Cup 2025 campaign has been affected by poor performances and off-field controversies, with skipper Salman Agha grabbing headlines each passing day. Despite leading the team into the Super Four stage, Agha’s individual contributions have been underwhelming, with just 40 runs across four matches and a solitary wicket.
Against India in the Super Four clash, Pakistan fell short by six wickets despite posting 171. Agha admitted his team was 10–15 runs short, but his own decision-making came under question after promoting Hussain Talat ahead of himself. Earlier in the tournament, he managed scores of 0 against Oman, 3 against India, and 20 against the UAE. The Men in Green have so far suffered two heavy defeats to India, a narrow win against the UAE, and a comfortable victory over Oman, leaving them looking like the weakest team in the Super Four.
Meanwhile, Agha has been involved in controversy, with the handshake row with India, skipping post-match interviews, and PCB’s fight with the ICC and the Match Officials.
2. Charith Asalanka: Sri Lanka
Charith Asalanka has continued to lead Sri Lanka brilliantly in the Asia Cup 2025. While his individual returns with the bat in recent matches have not been to par, with scores of 21 against Bangladesh, 17 versus Afghanistan, and an unbeaten 10 earlier against the Bengal Tigers, his leadership has been solid.
Sri Lanka entered the Super Four stage after an impressive group campaign, winning all three games while chasing. However, the challenge of batting first came during their Super Four clash against Bangladesh, where the team fell just short despite putting up 168/7. Asalanka admitted they could have added 10-15 more runs, but is optimistic about bouncing back. Placed third in the Super Fours points table currently, the Lankan Lions will be up against Pakistan and India next. Under Asalanka’s captaincy, the team is hoping to stay alive in the race for the final.
1. Suryakumar Yadav: India
India has had a dominating campaign in the 2025 Asia Cup, mostly due to their captain Suryakumar Yadav’s leadership. Under his approach, India stormed through the group stage, defeating the UAE, Pakistan, and Oman comfortably. In their opening Super Four clash against Pakistan in Dubai, the Men in Blue chased down 172 with seven balls to spare, sealing their seventh straight win over their arch-rivals since a rare loss in 2022 Asia Cup.
In four games, the 35-year-old has come out to bat thrice and scored 54 runs. His unbeaten 47 against Pakistan in the group stage displayed his ability to stabilize the innings and finish things off. Notably, he has backed Shivam Dube’s bowling, giving the full quota of overs. Against Oman, he didn't come out to bat to give chances to the other batters in the team.
