Will Hardik and Abhishek be fit for Asia Cup 2025 final against Pakistan?

DUBAI: India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel has played down injury concerns surrounding Hardik Pandya and Abhishek Sharma ahead of Sunday’s highly anticipated Asia Cup 2025 final against Pakistan in Dubai.

Hardik raised alarms when he clutched his left hamstring and walked off after bowling just one over during Sri Lanka’s innings on Friday. He had struck early, dismissing Kusal Mendis for a first-ball duck, but did not return to the field thereafter.

"Hardik had cramps, he will be assessed tonight and tomorrow morning, we'll then take a call on that," Morkel said at the post-match press conference.

Abhishek Sharma also caused worry when he showed signs of discomfort while sprinting in the ninth over, clutching his right thigh.

He eventually left the field in the 10th over, just before a delivery was declared dead ball as he had not exited before Varun Chakravarthy began his run-up.

Like Hardik, Abhishek received treatment with ice and pickle juice to ease cramps, spending the remainder of the innings off the field.

Substitutes Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube and Jitesh Sharma rotated in the field, while Tilak Varma briefly went off before returning after a hydration break.

With Friday’s match against Sri Lanka extending into a Super Over, India have less recovery time before the final. Morkel stressed that the focus will be on rest rather than training.

"The key for the boys is to rest," he said. "They're in an ice bath already. The recovery started straight after the match. The best way to recover is sleep and stay off your feet. Hopefully they can get a good night's sleep.

"There will be individual pool sessions for the guys organised. Then some massages before they get mentally ready for the big battle on Sunday. It's a quick turnaround, and playing smart is going to be the key. There will certainly be no training."

Morkel also acknowledged the pressure on youngsters like Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana, who were expensive against Sri Lanka, combining for 2-100 in eight overs. However, Arshdeep redeemed himself by holding his nerve in the Super Over to secure India’s victory.

"In our environment we want to move away from an excuse culture," he said. "The effort they put in at training, we expect them to go out there and deliver. Yes, sometimes lack of game time is a factor. You can bowl as many overs as you like in the nets, but nothing beats game time.

"The quality of work we put in, we expect the guys to deliver. At the moment, things aren't happening for them but the team is winning, they're all X-factor players and real match winners."