It isn't easy to predict a winner for the tournament before the start. India and Sri Lanka have been the most successful teams in the tournament. Then there is the dark horse Pakistan. Let us look at the performances of the sides in the past few editions, which will reveal a few betting tips that you can leverage during the tournament.
# Sri Lanka
They are the defending and won last year's title in the United Arab Emirates. They have won the tournament six times and are the most successful team along with India. Dasun Shanaka and his team would count their chances in the tournament as they have played well as they did well in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers recently. However, the Sri Lankan skipper would know his side's inconsistency in the last few years and expect key players to perform well.
Squad – Dasun Shanaka (C), Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Janith Perera
Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dhananjaya de Silva
Dushan Hemantha, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Pramod Madushan, Kasun Rajitha, Dilshan Madushanka, Matheesha Pathirana
# Pakistan
They finished as runner-up last year, and the title has eluded them for over a decade. As hosts, Babar Azam and his men would play with crowds cheering for them. The Pakistani skipper shall like to end the 11-year drought and win their first title since 2012. They have a strong pace bowling attack and a formidable top order. They are one of the contenders for the title and shall look to play well in the tournament.
Squad - Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Abdullah Shafique, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Imam-ul-Haq, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, Tayyab Tahir, Usama Mir, Sdaud Shakeel
# India
They won the last tournament in the ODI format in 2018. They are the most successful team in this tournament, with six title wins and three runner-up performances. Rohit Sharma leads the strongest batting line-up in the tournament, and he would like to play to his strengths. Sharma would expect a good show from his bowlers and overcome the poor record of not winning multilateral tournaments. Going by the team's strength, they will be the favorites to win this tournament.
Squad - Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishan Kishan (wk), Prasidh Krishna, Virat Kohli, Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Tilak Varma, Kuldeep Yadav, Suryakumar Yadav
# Bangladesh
They have made it to the final three times in the last five editions, but the title has eluded them. Shakib Al Hasan and his men are the dark horses who have the potential to beat any side on their day. However, consistency has been a problem for the team, and the Bangladeshi skipper would like to see a good show from his players in this game.
Squad - Shakib Al Hasan (c), Litton Das, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Hasan Mahmud, Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, Shamim Hossain, Ebadot Hossain, Afif Hossain, Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Mohammad Naim
# Afghanistan
It will be the fifth appearance for Hashmatullah Shahidi's side in the tournament. They haven't got past the Super Fours in previous editions. The side has quality talent and can beat any side when the players are in good form. However, the side has a poor record in multilateral tournaments. It will be interesting to see how they approach the game as they take on the powerhouses of Asian cricket.
Squad – Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ikram Alikhil, Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Janat, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Abdul Rahman, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Mohammad Saleem Safi, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Sharafuddin Ashraf
# Nepal
They will debut in the Asia Cup, a big moment for Nepal's cricket. The side has done well in the last two years and dominated at home earlier in the season. Here they will face some of the best players in the world and need to put their best foot together. It will be a big test for the side, and skipper Rohit Paudel would want his players to challenge their opponents.
Squad – Rohit Paudel (c), Aasif Sheikh (wk), Dipendra Singh Airee, Kushal Bhurtel, Mousom Dhakal, Pratis GC, Gulsan Jha, Sundeep Jora, Karan KC, Sompal Kami, Sandeep Lamichhane, Kishor Mahato, Kushal Malla, Lalit Rajbanshi, Aarif Sheikh, Arjun Saud (wk), Bhim Sharki
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