Asia Cup 2025: Ranking the best opening pairs

The Asia Cup 2025 was played in the T20 format, which meant that the role of opening pairs became even more important. In the shorter formats, the teams always look for strong and fast starts as that gives them the momentum to post or chase totals. There were some teams that saw brilliant performances from their openers, with consistent partnerships at the top of the order. These successful starts dictated the flow of matches and gave the teams an early advantage. On the other hand, the teams that struggled at the top of the order often found themselves playing catch-up as early wickets or lacklustre partnerships put pressure on the rest of the lineup, making it difficult to post or chase big totals. On that note, here is the ratings of the opening pairs (Full Members) in the Asia Cup 2025. 5. Afghanistan: 5/10 Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Sediqullah Atal (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP) (Photo by FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images) Afghanistan's opening pair of Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Sediqullah Atal struggled to provide consistent starts in the Asia Cup 2025, which played a major role in their early exit. Gurbaz, expected to anchor the top order, managed scores of 14, 35, and 8, failing to convert his starts into big innings. Atal played a brilliant unbeaten 73* against Hong Kong in the opener but failed in the remaining fixtures, scoring just 0 and 18. Their inability to build partnerships exposed Afghanistan's middle order too early in games against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Despite entering the tournament as strong contenders, Afghanistan finished with just one win in three matches. Their below-par opening stands resulted in their failure to qualify for the Super Four stage. 4. Bangladesh: 6/10 Tanzid Hasan and Saif Hassan (Photo by SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP via Getty Images) Bangladesh's Asia Cup 2025 campaign ended in disappointment, largely due to the inconsistent performances of their openers, Tanzid Hasan and Saif Hassan. While Saif showed moments of form with scores of 61 and 69 against Sri Lanka and India, his partner Tanzid managed just one run in the clash against India after a duck versus Sri Lanka. Their underwhelming performances at the top saw Bangladesh often start on the back foot, especially in must-win games. The team even experimented by bringing in Parvez Hossain Emon, but that move failed, as he could not provide the required starts. With a place in the final within reach, Bangladesh's poor opening partnerships proved costly, exposing the middle order too early and too often. 3. Sri Lanka: 7/10 Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis (Photo by Surjeet Yadav/MB Media/Getty Images) Sri Lanka's opening pair of Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis delivered some decent performances in the Asia Cup 2025, giving their team strong starts on multiple occasions. Nissanka stood out with a sublime ton against India, along with knocks of 68 against Hong Kong and 50 against Bangladesh. On the other hand, Mendis anchored innings with a brilliant unbeaten 74 against Afghanistan and added 34 against Bangladesh. Their partnerships often gave the middle order a platform to capitalise on. However, despite these impressive individual contributions, Sri Lanka failed to achieve consistent wins, with collapses in the middle and lower order hurting their campaign. As a result, the team missed out on qualifying for the Asia Cup final despite their openers' fine efforts. 2. Pakistan: 8/10 Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub (Photo by SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP via Getty Images) Pakistan's opening pair was under pressure in this Asia Cup, with Sahibzada Farhan showing some performances but Saim Ayub struggling badly. Ayub, considered Pakistan's X-factor, had a nightmare run with four ducks in the tournament. The team even experimented by demoting him to No.3, but the move did little to revive his form. Farhan, meanwhile, managed decent knocks in all three games against India (40, 58 and 57), but did not get consistent support at the other end. Fakhar Zaman chipped in with occasional starts, including a fifty against the UAE, but Pakistan rarely enjoyed the explosive beginnings. Their top-order failures often left the middle order with too much to do, especially in must-win games. Despite these issues, Pakistan managed to fight their way into the Asia Cup final, which they lost arch-rivals India. 1. India: 9/10 Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill. (Photo source: BCCI) India’s opening pair of Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma went all guns blazing in the tournament. Abhishek, currently the No. 1-ranked T20I batter, was in solid form in the Asia Cup 2025. With 314 runs in seven innings, including match-winning knocks of 61 against Sri Lanka, 75 against Bangladesh, and a 74 versus Pakistan, the southpaw has dominated bowling attacks. Meanwhile, Gill, who is the current India’s Test captain, failed to convert his starts. His 47 against Pakistan and 29 against Bangladesh in the Super Four stage were the only notable contributions.

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Asia Cup 2025: Ranking the best opening pairs

The teams are looking for strong starts that give them the momentum needed to post or chase competitive totals.

1. India: 9/10

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