The 2025 Asia Cup is just around the corner! Before the main tournament, three teams will play a warm-up called the “Tri-Series.”
You might be wondering, what’s a Tri-Series? Here’s the easiest way to understand it, plus a look at the UAE T20I Tri-Series 2025 schedule, team squads, and who’s most likely to claim the championship.
A Tri-Nation Series is basically a mini cricket tournament where three national teams go head-to-head. Usually, it’s played in ODI or T20I format, with each team taking on the other two once or twice.
The top two teams then battle it out in the final to see who takes home the crown. Think of it as a warm-up before the big leagues like the T20 World Cup or Asia Cup.
The whole point? It’s a chance for teams to try out new strategies, see which players are in form, and figure out who’s really carrying the squad. And sometimes, it’s just fun watching the underdogs try to shake things up!
Win = 2 points, Tie/No Result = 1 point, Loss = 0 points. The top two teams go to the final.
If points are equal, Net Run Rate or head-to-head record decides.
Yes. Match results affect both team and player rankings. High-ranked teams are more impacted, lower-ranked teams less so.
No fixed schedule. They happen occasionally, usually depending on whether there’s a major tournament coming up.
The 2025 UAE T20I Tri-Series will be held from August 29 to September 7 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in the UAE.
Three teams are taking part: the hosts UAE, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
The series uses a round-robin format, with each team playing the other two twice. The top two teams then advance to the final, making a total of 7 matches in the tournament.
Where to Watch UAE T20I Tri-Series 2025 or the Asia Cup? Indian fans can stream all matches live on Dubai7.
Dubai7 offers real-time scores, player stats, and live streaming, making it easy to follow every match from anywhere.
Before the main action of the Asia Cup, three teams, UAE, Pakistan and Afghanistan, will face off in the UAE T20I Tri-Series 2025. So, what’s the story with these squads?
The hosts are mostly here to gain experience rather than dominate. They’re still a step behind Afghanistan and Pakistan, but every match is a chance to learn.
This time, they brought along three wicketkeepers, which is unusual and gives them some tactical flexibility.
Captain M Waseem is their main bat, while bowlers like Ali Naseer and Junaid Siddique might create a few surprises on Sharjah’s slow pitch.
Overall, UAE is playing for experience rather than wins.
| UAE Squad |
|---|
| Asif Khan |
| M Zuhaib |
| M Waseem (c) (wk) |
| Rahul Chopra (wk) |
| Alishan Sharafu |
| A Sharma (wk) |
| Saghier Khan |
| Dhruv Parashar |
| Aayan Khan |
| Ali Naseer |
| M Jawadullah |
| Sanchit Sharma |
| Akif Raja |
| Haider Ali |
| Junaid Siddique |
Pakistan remains a cricket powerhouse, ranked 8th in T20Is, led by Salman Agha.
Fakhar Zaman is back from injury, giving their batting a bit more firepower. But they’re missing big names like Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, which makes the squad less intimidating.
Their recent 1-2 loss to Bangladesh also shows form is patchy. Essentially, this series is a trial run for their Asia Cup lineup.
Winning is nice, but testing the squad under pressure is the main goal.
| Pakistan Squad |
|---|
| Salman Ali Agha (C) |
| Abrar Ahmed |
| Faheem Ashraf |
| Fakhar Zaman |
| Haris Rauf |
| Hasan Ali |
| Hasan Nawaz |
| Hussain Talat |
| Khushdil Shah |
| Mohammad Haris (wk) |
| Mohammad Nawaz |
| Mohammad Waseem Jnr |
| Sahibzada Farhan |
| Saim Ayub |
| Salman Mirza |
| Shaheen Shah Afridi |
| Sufyan Moqim |
Afghanistan has become a serious force in T20 cricket. Their spin duo, Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad, thrive on Sharjah’s slow pitches, especially with evening dew.
Openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Hazratullah Zazai bring firepower at the top.
Many see Afghanistan as the dark horse in Asia Cup’s Group B, fully capable of reaching the semifinals. Treating this Tri-Series as a warm-up could set them up perfectly for a strong Asia Cup showing.
| Afghanistan Squad |
|---|
| Darwish Rasooli |
| Hazratullah Zazai |
| Ibrahim Zadran |
| Najibullah Zadran |
| M Ishaq (wk) |
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz |
| Rashid Khan (c) |
| Azmatullah Omarzai |
| Gulbadin Naib |
| Karim Janat |
| Nangeyalia Kharote |
| Fareed Ahmad |
| Fazalhaq Farooqi |
| Naveen-ul-Haq |
| Noor Ahmad |
Afghanistan are the favorites. Their spin attack is strong, slow pitches suit them, and they’ve mostly beaten UAE before. Against Pakistan they’re close, but the gap is small.
Pakistan are strong traditionally, but missing Babar and Rizwan weakens them. UAE are mostly here for experience, so any win would be a bonus.
They’ve met 7 times in T20Is, Pakistan winning 4 and Afghanistan 3. Five of those were in Sharjah, with Pakistan 3-2 ahead.
Overall, Pakistan have a slight edge, but Sharjah’s slow pitches suit Afghanistan’s spinners.
In 12 T20Is, Afghanistan have won 9, though UAE pulled off a surprise 2-1 series win at home in 2023-24.
Afghanistan generally dominate, but UAE can still cause an upset.
Only 1 meeting before, back in the 2016 Asia Cup qualifiers, which Pakistan won easily. The gap in strength is clear.
Actually, this series never had anything to do with India. It started as a Pakistan vs Afghanistan T20I series, then the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decided to turn it into a tri-series, moved it to UAE, and added the host team.
India’s board (BCCI) hasn’t really been into tri-series for a few years.
Since 2020, the men’s team has focused on bilateral series or big tournaments like the ICC World Cup or Asia Cup—they just pick the big stage.
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