Asia Cup 2022: 5 potential Player of the Tournament candidates

With the T20 World Cup happening later in the year, the Asia Cup holds a lot of importance for many of the players. Their place in the XI or even in the 15 will be questioned if they fail to impress the selectors in the Asia Cup. Thus, all the players will look forward to giving their best in order to book their place for the mega tournament in Australia. India and Pakistan are of course the favourites to win the tournament. However, one can never dish out Sri Lanka or Afghanistan. Bangladesh of course will be the dark horse of the tournament after their series loss against Zimbabwe. However, who can inspire their respective teams in order to bag the Asian glory? Here’s a list of- 5 players who have the potential to win the Asia Cup Player of the Tournament award 1. Suryakumar Yadav Suryakumar Yadav. (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP) (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images) The flamboyant Indian batter has been sensational ever since he made his India debut. The 31-year-old is just behind Babar Azam as he currently stands second in ICC Men’s T20I rankings. After a very successful series against the West Indies, Suryakumar will now take some time off before returning to the Asia Cup. The Mumbai-born cricketer now has 672 runs in 23 T20 Internationals. He can change the complexion of the match at any given point and that’s what makes him such a dangerous player in T20I cricket. He has also groomed himself to be India’s Mr. 360 as the player has shown his class to hit shots at every corner of the ground. With Rohit Sharma and company getting used to playing aggressive cricket, players like Suryakumar get a lot of freedom to explore and then implode. With the talent he has, the MI batter definitely has the potential to win the Man of the Tournament award in the Asia Cup. 2. Babar Azam Pakistan captain Babar Azam. (Photo by ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images) Ever since Babar Azam emerged on the international scene, he has impressed one and all. He was always compared to Virat Kohli but he did not let any pressure downgrade his game. The Pakistan team is yet to win a mega tournament of late and would hope that this scene changes in the Asia Cup. They came really close in the last T20 World Cup but couldn’t go the distance. Speaking about Babar, the 27-year-old has scored 2686 runs in the 74 T20 Internationals that he has played. With an average of 45.52, Babar is the number one ranked player in ICC’s Men T20I ranking. Babar along with Rizwan played remarkably in the T20 World Cup and registered their first victory against India in World Cup. With the two teams facing each other in their very first match, the Pakistan star will look forward to replicating the same. 3. Rashid Khan Rashid Khan. (Photo by Matthew Lewis-ICC/ICC via Getty Images) Rashid Khan can be a big threat for every team in this Asia Cup. He currently is in the shadows as not a lot of fans are talking about him. Despite that, being a genius in this format of the game, Rashid has the ability to help Afghanistan win their maiden Asia Cup trophy this year. The leg-spinner has picked 109 wickets in 62 T20I that he has played. Batters find him extremely difficult to read and in the testing conditions at UAE, Rashid can prove to be a really difficult bowler to face. His economical spells will help the Afghanis to restrict their opponent from scoring a lot of runs. He has enough experience of playing in these conditions and if he gets going, the spinner will be difficult to stop. He poses a lot of threat and that’s why has the potential to win the Man of the Tournament trophy. 4. Wanindu Hasaranga Wanindu Hasaranga. (Photo by AAMIR QURESHI/AFP via Getty Images) There’s no doubt about Wanindu Hasaranga has potential but the player is yet to show his class in mega tournaments. If Sri Lanka aims to win the Asia Cup, a lot will depend on Wanindu Hasaranga. Not just with the bowl, he can be very effective with the bat as well. In the Indian Premier League 2022, the Sri Lankan picked 26 wickets, and ever since that, the Sri Lankan fans expect a lot from the player. Representing Sri Lanka in 38 T20Is, Hasaranga picked up 62 wickets. He has also hit 382 runs in the process. Hasaranga can blow hot or cold but the threat is always there. This can be Hasaranga’s breakthrough year in International cricket and he just needs to play to his full potential. 5. Shaheen Afridi Shaheen Afridi. (Photo by AAMIR QURESHI/AFP via Getty Images) Just like Suryakumar Yadav, Shaheen Afridi has been sensational right from the start of his career. He of course had his breakthrough last year in the T20 World Cup when he sent India’s top order back to the pavilion in no time. Ever since that, he is considered to be one of the best pacers in the world. From the stats point of view, Shaheen has picked 47 wickets in 40 T20 Internationals. He has an average of 24.31 in T20Is. He has been in fantastic form lately and thus would look forward to bagging the Man of the Tournament award and eventually his maiden Asia Cup. It’s not just the bowling, Afridi is very much known for his hard-hitting shots as well. He has shown his skill in the PSL and if required, can show in the Asia Cup as well. However, it’s his bowling that’s destined to catch everyone’s attention.

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Asia Cup 2022: 5 potential Player of the Tournament candidates

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