Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has taken a dig at teams participating in the ongoing Asia Cup, saying the tournament lacked competitiveness and could not serve as a proper build-up to the 2026 T20 World Cup. 

 

Speaking on his YouTube channel before India’s opening clash against the UAE, the 38-year-old said the gap between India and the rest of the teams was too wide.

 

“They can almost include South Africa and make it an Afro-Asia Cup to make the tournament competitive. As it is now, they should probably include India A for it to be some contest. We’ve not even talked about Bangladesh because there is nothing to talk about. How are these teams even going to compete against India?” Ashwin said.

 

He went on to add that Asia Cup could only work as a warm-up at best for the 2026 T20 World Cup, which India and Sri Lanka will host together. “This tournament isn’t some major yardstick for it. Even against the so-called threat of the Afghanistan bowlers, if India bat well and score 170+, who will Afghanistan chase this down with? It’s nearly impossible. The only way to defeat India is by somehow restricting them to 155 on a good day and then chasing it down. Normally, a T20 is thrilling, but India will likely make even that one-sided in this Asia Cup.”

 

The Asia Cup began on Sept 9 in Abu Dhabi with Afghanistan thrashing Hong Kong by 94 runs in the opening match.

 

While Ashwin downplays the significance of the tournament, some Indian media reports claim that high ticket prices are also dampening its appeal. 

 

According to the Indian media, premium packages on platforms like Viagogo and Platinumlist have slowed demand this year. The unusually slow sales of tickets also mark a rare sight for the Pakistan-India clash on Sept 14, which has long been one of the most-awaited sporting events worldwide.