Asia Cup

Men's cricket tournament From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Men's Asia Cup is a biennial cricket tournament organized by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC). It features senior men's national teams from Asian member countries and determines the continental cricket champion of Asia.[3] The tournament was established in the year 1983, coinciding with the formation of the Asian Cricket Council, as an effort to promote goodwill among Asian countries through cricket. India boycotted the 1986 edition due to strained cricketing relations with Sri Lanka, while Pakistan withdrew from the 1990–91 edition because of political tensions with India. The 1993 tournament was also cancelled for similar reasons. The ACC later announced that the event would be held biennially starting from 2009. The ICC recognizes all Asia Cup matches as official ODI games. After downsizing the Asian Cricket Council in 2015, it was announced by the ICC that Asia Cup events from 2016 would be played on a rotation basis between One Day International and Twenty20 International format, on the basis of the format of upcoming world events. As a result, the 2016 event was the first event played in the T20I format and functioned as a preparatory tournament ahead of the 2016 ICC World Twenty20.[4]

FormatODI and T20I
First edition1984
Latest edition2025
Quick facts Administrator, Format ...
Men's Asia Cup
Tournament logo
AdministratorAsian Cricket Council
FormatODI and T20I
First edition1984
Latest edition2025
Next edition2027
Tournament formatGroup stage and knockouts
Current championIndia India (9th title)
Most successfulIndia India (9 titles)
Most runsSri Lanka Sanath Jayasuriya (1220)[1]
Most wicketsIndia Kuldeep Yadav (36)[2]
Websiteasiancricket.org
2025 Asia Cup
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India, with nine titles (seven ODI and two T20I), is the most successful team in the tournament. Sri Lanka is the second most successful team with six titles (five ODI and one T20I), while Pakistan have won two. Sri Lanka has participated in the most Asia Cups (17), followed by India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh (16 each).

History

More information Season, Format ...
Winners of ACC Asia Cup
SeasonFormatChampion
1984 ODI  India
1986 ODI  Sri Lanka
1988 ODI  India (2)
1990/91 ODI  India (3)
1995 ODI  India (4)
1997 ODI  Sri Lanka (2)
2000 ODI  Pakistan
2004 ODI  Sri Lanka (3)
2008 ODI  Sri Lanka (4)
2010 ODI  India (5)
2012 ODI  Pakistan (2)
2014 ODI  Sri Lanka (5)
2016 T20I  India (6)
2018 ODI  India (7)
2022 T20I  Sri Lanka (6)
2023 ODI  India (8)
2025 T20I  India (9)
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1980s

The inaugural edition of the Rothmans Asia Cup took place in Sharjah, UAE, in 1984,[5] coinciding with the establishment of the Asian Cricket Council headquartered in the same city. The event featured a round-robin format between India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. India won both its matches to claim the first title, while Sri Lanka finished second after defeating Pakistan.[6][7]

Sri Lanka hosted the second edition in 1986. India withdrew from the tournament due to strained cricketing relations with Sri Lanka after a controversial series the previous year.[8] Bangladesh participated for the first time. Sri Lanka won the tournament by defeating Pakistan in the final.

The third edition, in 1988, was held in Bangladesh, marking the first time a multi-national cricket tournament was staged there. In the final, India beat Sri Lanka by six wickets to claim their second Asia Cup.

1990s

The fourth edition of the tournament was held in India in 1990–91. Pakistan withdrew because of strained political relations with India. India retained the Asia Cup by defeating Sri Lanka in the final. In 1993, the tournament was cancelled due to continued political tensions between India and Pakistan.

The fifth edition, in 1995, returned to Sharjah, UAE after eleven years. India and Sri Lanka reached the final by virtue of a superior run rate over Pakistan, as all three teams finished the preliminary round with equal points. For the third successive time, India defeated Sri Lanka in the final.

The sixth edition was held in Sri Lanka in 1997, where the hosts beat India in the final by eight wickets to win their second Asia Cup.

2000s

The seventh edition of the Asia Cup was held in Bangladesh in 2000, marking the second time the country hosted the tournament. Pakistan and Sri Lanka reached the final, while India won only one match (against Bangladesh) and, for the first time, failed to qualify for the final. Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka to win their maiden Asia Cup title, with Yousuf Youhana named Player of the Tournament.

The 8th edition took place in Sri Lanka in 2004 with a new format. UAE and Hong Kong joined the competition for the first time, making it a six-team event divided into three stages – Group Stage, Super Fours, and the Final. Sri Lanka, India, and UAE were placed in Group A, while Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Hong Kong were in Group B. UAE and Hong Kong were eliminated in the group stage. Bangladesh progressed to the Super Fours for the first time in a major tournament but failed to perform. India and Sri Lanka topped the Super Fours to reach the final, where Sri Lanka defeated India by 25 runs. Sanath Jayasuriya was awarded Player of the Tournament.

The 9th edition was hosted by Pakistan from 24 June to 6 July 2008, following the same format as 2004.[9] Sri Lanka and Bangladesh qualified from Group A, while India and Pakistan advanced from Group B. In the Super Fours, India and Sri Lanka finished on top to enter the final. Sri Lanka won their fourth Asia Cup by defeating India by 100 runs. Sanath Jayasuriya scored 125 off 114 balls to rescue Sri Lanka from 66/4, while mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis produced a match-winning spell of 6/13. Mendis was named Player of the Tournament.

2010s

The tenth edition was held in Sri Lanka, between 15 and 24 June 2010 hosting the Asia Cup for the fourth time. It only featured the four Test playing Asian nations, and seven matches were played in all (including the final). Sri Lanka and India topped the group stages and entered the final. In the final, India beat Sri Lanka comfortably to become champions for the fifth time, winning the tournament for first time in 15 years.[10] Shahid Afridi was the Player of the Tournament.

The eleventh edition of the Asia Cup was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh, from 11 to 22 March 2012. Pakistan and Bangladesh qualified to play in the final of the eleventh edition, Bangladesh had beaten India and Sri Lanka to book their place in the final for the first time in the history of the tournament. Pakistan beat Bangladesh after a thrilling final over, winning their second Asia Cup.[11] Shakib Al Hasan was adjudged the Player of the Tournament. Sachin Tendulkar scored his 100th international century in this tournament.

The twelfth edition was held in Dhaka and Fatullah, Bangladesh, from 25 February to 8 March 2014. The tournament consisted of five teams with Afghanistan in it for the first time since its inception in 1984. Sri Lanka defeated Pakistan by 5 wickets in the final to win the Asia Cup for the fifth time. Lahiru Thirimanne was adjudged the Player of the Tournament scoring 279 runs.

After the Asian Cricket Council was downsized by the ICC in 2015, it was announced that Asia Cup tournaments would be played on rotation basis in ODI and T20I format.[12][13] As a result, 2016 events was the first tournament in T20I format and was played by five teams just ahead of 2016 ICC World Twenty20. The 2016 edition of the Asia Cup tournament was held in Bangladesh for the third consecutive time from 24 February to 6 March. The final was held on 6 March 2016. India won the final by beating Bangladesh by 8 wickets in the final held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium situated in Mirpur locality, Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is for the sixth time that India won the Asia cup title in 2016. Shikhar Dhawan of India was the man of the match for his 60 runs. Sabbir Rahman of Bangladesh was the player of the series. India won all of its matches played in Asia Cup 2016 beating Bangladesh 2 times, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and UAE.

On 29 October 2015, following the Asian Cricket Council meeting in Singapore, BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur stated that the 2018 edition of the tournament would be held in India. It will follow the ODI format.[14] However, in April 2018, the tournament was moved to the United Arab Emirates, due to political tensions between India and Pakistan.[15]

India were the defending champions,[16] and retained their title, after beating Bangladesh by three wickets in the final.[17] India did not suffer a single defeat in the tournament, with 2 wins each against Pakistan & Bangladesh, a solitary win against Hong Kong, and a tie with Afghanistan. Shikhar Dhawan was the top run getter with 342 runs in 5 matches, was awarded Man of the Series. Afghanistan was the only team in the tournament who remained unbeaten against eventual winners India.

2020s

The United Arab Emirates hosted the tournament and Sri Lanka won the Asia Cup beating Pakistan by 23 runs in the final. Sri Lanka reached the final as the only unbeaten team in the Super-Four stage winning against Afghanistan, India, and Pakistan.[18] Bhanuka Rajapaksa was awarded Man of the Match for his unbeaten 71 off 45 balls, and Wanindu Hasaranga was second highest wicket-taker with 9 wickets in 6 matches, scored 66 runs in 5 innings and was named Player of the Series. Pakistan had an average start in the Asia Cup with a defeat against India in the group stage, beating India & Afghanistan in a close encounter in Super 4, ending with 2 back-to-back defeats against Sri Lanka. India started the tournament as hot favourites defeating Pakistan; however, they could not win against them and Sri Lanka in the super 4 and got knocked out of the tournament. Afghanistan was the only team in the tournament to defeat the eventual winners Sri Lanka.

Pakistan was awarded to host the tournament in 2023.[19] However, the Indian cricket team was reluctant to visit Pakistan to participate in the tournament. So, after a lot of deliberation, India agreed to play in a hybrid model where India will play all their matches in another country and few other matches will be hosted in Pakistan. Thus, it was the first Asia Cup to be co-hosted by multiple countries; four matches were played in Pakistan, and the remaining nine matches were played in Sri Lanka.[20] The five full members of the Asian Cricket Council were joined by Nepal, who made their ACC Asia Cup debut having qualified for the first time in qualifying the 2023 ACC Men's Premier Cup. India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan qualified to play in the tournament. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka qualified to play the Super fours stage. India and Pakistan played the finals, in which India defeated Pakistan by 5 wickets to win their ninth Asia cup title.[21]

Revenue distribution

Around 80% of the tournament's revenue is generated from matches featuring India and Pakistan.[22] To meet broadcasting demands, the two teams are often placed in the same group for commercial reasons.[23] The five Full Members each receive approximately 15% of total revenue, with the remaining amount distributed among Associate and Affiliate national boards.[22] The BCCI has publicly stated that it donates a portion of its share to smaller boards to support cricket development within and outside Asia.[24]

Results

More information Year, Format ...
Year Format Host(s) No. of teams Final
Venue Champions Result Runners-up
1984
Details
ODI United Arab Emirates3Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah IndiaNo finals; India won the tournament via Round-robin format Sri Lanka
1986
Details
ODI Sri Lanka3Singhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground, Colombo Sri Lanka
195/5 (42.2 overs)
Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets
(scorecard)
 Pakistan
191/9 (45 overs)
1988
Details
ODI Bangladesh4Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka India
180/4 (37.1 overs)
India won by 6 wickets
(scorecard)
 Sri Lanka
176 (43.5 overs)
1990/91
Details
ODI India3Eden Gardens, Calcutta India
205/3 (42.1 overs)
India won by 7 wickets
(scorecard)
 Sri Lanka
204/9 (45 overs)
1995
Details
ODI United Arab Emirates4Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah India
233/2 (41.5 overs)
India won by 8 wickets
(scorecard)
 Sri Lanka
230/7 (50 overs)
1997
Details
ODI Sri Lanka4R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo Sri Lanka
240/2 (36.5 overs)
Sri Lanka won by 8 wickets
(scorecard)
 India
239/7 (50 overs)
2000
Details
ODI Bangladesh4Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka Pakistan
277/4 (50 overs)
Pakistan won by 39 runs
(scorecard)
 Sri Lanka
238 (45.2 overs)
2004
Details
ODI Sri Lanka6R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo Sri Lanka
228/9 (50 overs)
Sri Lanka won by 25 runs
(scorecard)
 India
203/9 (50 overs)
2008
Details
ODI Pakistan6National Stadium, Karachi Sri Lanka
273 (49.5 overs)
Sri Lanka won by 100 runs
(scorecard)
 India
173 (39.3 overs)
2010
Details
ODI Sri Lanka4Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium, Dambulla India
268/6 (50 overs)
India won by 81 runs
(scorecard)
 Sri Lanka
187 (44.4 overs)
2012
Details
ODI Bangladesh4Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur Pakistan
236/9 (50 overs)
Pakistan won by 2 runs
(scorecard)
 Bangladesh
234/8 (50 overs)
2014
Details
ODI Bangladesh5Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur  Sri Lanka
261/5 (46.2 overs)
Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets
(scorecard)
 Pakistan
260/5 (50 overs)
2016
Details
T20IBangladesh5Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur  India
122/2 (13.5 overs)
India won by 8 wickets
(scorecard)
 Bangladesh
120/5 (15 overs)
2018
Details
ODI United Arab Emirates6Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai India
223/7 (50 overs)
India won by 3 wickets
(scorecard)
 Bangladesh
222 (48.3 overs)
2022
Details
T20IUnited Arab Emirates 6Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai Sri Lanka
170/6 (20 overs)
Sri Lanka won by 23 runs
(scorecard)
 Pakistan
147 (20 overs)
2023
Details
ODI Pakistan
Sri Lanka
6R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo  India
51/0 (6.1 overs)
India won by 10 wickets
(scorecard)
 Sri Lanka
50 (15.2 overs)
2025
Details
T20I United Arab Emirates 8Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai India
150/5 (19.4 overs)
India won by 5 wickets
(scorecard)
 Pakistan
146 (19.1 overs)
2027
Details
ODI Bangladesh 8 Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur
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Tournament summary

Overall

The table below provides an overview of the performances of teams over past Asia Cup ODI and T20I tournaments.[25][26]

More information Team, Appearances ...
Team Appearances Best result
Total First Latest
 India 1619842025Champions
(1984, 1988, 1990–91, 1995, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2023, 2025)
 Sri Lanka 1719842025Champions
(1986, 1997, 2004, 2008, 2014, 2022)
 Pakistan 1619842025Champions
(2000, 2012)
 Bangladesh 1619862025Runners-up
(2012, 2016, 2018)
 Afghanistan 520142025Super Four
(2018, 2022)
 Hong Kong 520042025Group Stage
(2004, 2008, 2018, 2022, 2025)
 United Arab Emirates 420042025Group Stage
(2004, 2008, 2016, 2025)
   Nepal 12023Group Stage
(2023)
 Oman 12025Group Stage
(2025)
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ODIs

The table below provides an overview of the performances of teams over past Asia Cup ODI tournaments.[27]

More information Team, Appearances ...
Team Appearances Best result Statistics
Total First Latest Played Won Lost Tie NR Win%
 India 1319842023Champions (1984, 1988, 1990–91, 1995, 2010, 2018, 2023) 5535171266.98
 Sri Lanka 1419842023Champions (1986, 1997, 2004, 2008, 2014) 5538170067.85
 Pakistan 1319842023Champions (2000, 2012) 5028200258.33
 Bangladesh 1319862023Runners-up (2012, 2018) 489390018.75
 Afghanistan 320142023Super Four (2018)11371031.81
 Hong Kong 320042018Group Stage (2004, 2008, 2018)606000.00
   Nepal 1 2023 2023 Group Stage (2023)202000.00
 United Arab Emirates 220042008Group Stage (2004, 2008)404000.00
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T20Is

The table below provides an overview of the performances of teams in the Asia Cup T20I tournament.[3]

More information Team, Appearances ...
Team Appearances Best result Statistics
Total First Latest Played Won Lost Tie NR Win%
 India 320162025Champions (2016, 2025) 171520088.23
 Sri Lanka 320162025Champions (2022)16970056.25
 Pakistan 320162025Runners-up (2022, 2025)16970056.25
 Bangladesh 320162025Runners-up (2016)13670046.15
 Afghanistan 220222025Super Four (2022)8350037.50
 United Arab Emirates 220162025Group Stage (2016, 2025)7160014.29
 Hong Kong 220222025Group Stage (2022, 2025) 5050000.00
 Oman 12025Group Stage (2025)3030000.00
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Note:

  • The win percentage excludes no-result matches and counts ties as half a win.
  • Teams are sorted by best result, then winning percentage, then (if equal) by alphabetical order.

Performance by teams

1st
Champion
2nd
Runners-up
3rd
2nd Runners-up
DNQ
Did not qualify
Q
Qualified
WD
Withdrawn
GS
Group stage
ICC Full Member Nation

An overview of the teams' performances in every Asia Cup:

India has most titles i.e. 9, while Sri Lanka has second highest 6.

More information HostTeam, 1984 ODI ...
Host
Team
1984
ODI
1986
ODI
1988
ODI
1990/91
ODI
1995
ODI
1997
ODI
2000
ODI
2004
ODI
2008
ODI
2010
ODI
2012
ODI
2014
ODI
2016
T20I
2018
ODI
2022
T20I
2023
ODI
2025
T20I
United Arab Emirates Sri Lanka Bangladesh India United Arab Emirates Sri Lanka Bangladesh Sri Lanka Pakistan Sri Lanka Bangladesh Bangladesh Bangladesh United Arab Emirates United Arab Emirates PakistanSri Lanka United Arab Emirates
 Afghanistan
DNQ
4th
DNQ
4th4thGSGS
 Bahrain
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
 Bangladesh3rd4th3rd4th4th4th4th4th4th2nd5th2nd2ndGS3rd3rd
 Cambodia
DNQ
 Hong Kong
DNQ
GSGS
DNQ
GSGS
DNQ
GS
 India1st
WD
1st1st1st2nd3rd2nd2nd1st3rd3rd1st1st3rd1st1st
 Kuwait
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
 Malaysia
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
   Nepal
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
GS
DNQ
 Oman
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
GS
 Pakistan3rd2nd3rd
WD
3rd3rd1st3rd3rd3rd1st2nd3rd3rd
2nd
4th2nd
 Qatar
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
 Saudi Arabia
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
 Singapore
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
 Sri Lanka2nd1st2nd2nd2nd1st2nd1st1st2nd4th1st4thGS
1st
2nd4th
 United Arab EmiratesGSGS5th
DNQ
DNQ
DNQ
GS
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Debutant teams in final tournament

More information Year, Teams ...
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Debutant teams in Asia Cup Qualifier

More information Year, Teams ...
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Championship summary

More information Rank, Teams ...
Rank Teams Appearance Titles Runners-up
1  India 16 9 3
2  Sri Lanka 17 6 7
3  Pakistan 16 2 4
4  Bangladesh 16 0 3
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Ranking

Results

More information #, Year ...
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Medals

More information Rank, Nation ...
RankNationGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1 India (IND)93416
2 Sri Lanka (SRI)67013
3 Pakistan (PAK)24915
4 Bangladesh (BAN)0347
Totals (4 entries)17171751
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Summary

More information Team, Part ...
Rank[28][29][30]TeamPartMWLTNRW/L
1 India 16725019132.631
2 Sri Lanka 17714724051.958
3 Pakistan16663727021.370
4 Bangladesh16611546000.326
5 Afghanistan522813100.615
6   Nepal1202000.000
7 United Arab Emirates414410000.400
8 Hong Kong614014000.000
9 Oman2615000.200
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Qualification

More information Year, Qualification tournament ...
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Records and statistics

Broadcasters

More information Country or territory, Broadcasters ...
Country or territory Broadcasters Year
Bangladesh GTV, T Sports HD, Rabbithole Prime, Toffee (Offline), T sports app, Nagorik TV, 2022–27
Caribbean RUSH Sports 2023
India and Nepal Sony Sports Network 2024–31
Sri Lanka TV 1 (MTV Channel) 2025–27[31]
Pakistan PTV, Ten Sports 2022–23
Australia Kayo Sports 2022
Middle East and North Africa TV by e& and STARZON 2022–23
Malaysia Astro Cricket 2022–23
Singapore HUB Sports 2022–23
United Kingdom TNT Sports 2022–23
Continental Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Malaysia and Southeast Asia YuppTV 2016–23
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See also

References

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