As the 2025 Asia Cup nears, beginning on September 9th, the tournament will differ from the previous edition. The changes include a new format and the absence of several key players. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have retired from T20 cricket, and Pakistan’s star batsmen Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan will also miss the event. This has placed the leadership responsibility on Salman Ali Agha, a captain still building his international profile.
On August 17th, the Pakistan Cricket Board announced the Asia Cup squad, omitting Babar and Rizwan and naming all-rounder Salman Ali Agha as captain. Agha has been part of the Pakistani team for about 2-3 years. He made his T20 debut in November 2024 and is now captain. In his brief career, Agha hasn’t yet achieved any significant feats.
Salman, a right-handed batsman and off-spinner, bats in the middle order for Pakistan. He has played 20 T20 matches, scoring 380 runs at an average of 27 with a strike rate of 115 and 3 half-centuries. He has also taken 4 wickets. His overall T20 stats show 105 matches, 1668 runs at a strike rate of 120, and 44 wickets.
Despite these stats, Salman will be leading Pakistan in the upcoming match against India. However, he has not played any T20 matches against India. He has participated in 3 ODIs against India, including 2 in the 2023 Asia Cup, scoring only 42 runs.
In one of these matches, Ravindra Jadeja caused an injury to Salman. During the match on September 11th, Salman attempted a sweep shot off Jadeja’s bowling. He was not wearing a helmet, and the ball hit his face, causing a deep cut and bleeding. This injury forced him to miss the subsequent games.