Updated: Aug 27, 2023
Asia Cup in numbers: The top batters, bowlers, wicketkeepers, fielders and team records from all Asia Cup so far.
The upcoming Asia Cup will be the 16th edition of the prestigious multi-national cricket tournament. While there have been 15 tournaments in the past, it has not entirely been played in the ODI format with two editions being played in the T20I format.
We will here see how the past 13 editions of the Asia Cup in the ODI format have panned out. A total of 8 teams have featured in the Asia Cup since 1984, and Sri Lanka is the only team to have featured in all the editions so far.
Top 3 scores
| Team | Opposite | Score | Venue | Date | Match Result |
| Pakistan | Bangladesh | 385/7 | Dambulla | 21 Jun 2010 | Pak won by 139 runs |
| India | Hong Kong | 374/4 | Karachi | 25 Jun 2008 | India won by 256 runs |
| Sri Lanka | Bangladesh | 357/9 | Lahaore | 25 Jun 2008 | SL won by 131 runs |
Pakistan have scored the highest ever total in Asia Cup history, having amassed a mammoth 385 in the 2010 Asia Cup game against Bangladesh. Shahid Afridi scored a 60-ball 124 which led to Pakistan winning the game by 139 runs. Next in the list is India, the 374 came in a winning cause against Hong Kong, followed by Sri Lanka’s hammering Bangladesh for 357, both the 2nd and the 3rd highest scores, interestingly, happened on the same day.
Lowest scores
| Team | Opposite | Score | Venue | Date | Match Result |
| Bangladesh | Pakistan | 87 | Dhaka | 2 Jun 2000 | Ban lost by 233 runs |
| Bangladesh | Pakistan | 94 | Moratuwa | 31 Mar 1986 | Ban lost by 7 wickets |
| Sri Lanka | India | 96 | Sharjah | 8 Apr 1984 | SL lost by 10 wickets |
Bangladesh hold the dubious record of having the top-2 lowest totals in ODI Asia Cup history and both of them came against Pakistan. Sri Lanka’s 96 against India in 1984 is the 3rd lowest ever total in Asia Cup history.
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Highest victory margins (runs)
| Team | Opposite | Score | Venue | Date | Margin of win |
| India | Hong Kong | 374/4 | Karachi | 25 Jun 2008 | By 256 runs |
| Pakistan | Bangladesh | 320/3 | Dhaka | 2 June 2000 | By 233 runs |
| Pakistan | Bangladesh | 284/3 | Chattogram | 20 Oct 1988 | By 173 runs |
India leads the list with its mammoth 256-run victory over Hong Kong in the 2008 Asia Cup held in Pakistan. Suresh Raina and the then Indian skipper both hit centuries as India piled up 374 in their quota of overs, and Hong Kong in turn were bowled out for just 118 runs.
The next 2 highest margin of wins were achieved by Pakistan and their opponent both the time was Bangladesh, whom they beat by 233 and 173 runs in 2000 and 1998 respectively.
Lowest victory margins (runs)
| Team | Opposite | Score | Venue | Date | Margin of win |
| Pakistan | Bangladesh | 236/9 | Mirpur | 22 Mar 2022 | By 2 runs |
| India | Sri Lanka | 271/6 | Colombo | 27 Jul 2004 | By 4 runs |
| Pakistan | India | 257/7 | Sharjah | 23 Oct 1991 | By 4 runs |
In what was a thriller at Mirpur in the Asia Cup 2012 Final, Pakistan won a close game by mere 2 runs against Bangladesh. After making 236 with the bat, Pakistan bounced back strongly to restrict the hosts to only 234, thanks to an all-round performance by Shahid Afridi.
In the 2004 game, India won against Sri Lanka by 4 runs, this time with the help of Virender Sehwag’s heroics who made 81 with the bat and also took 3 wickets. Similarly, Pakistan also won the game against India by a 4-run margin back in 1991, in which Aamer Sohail emerged as the real match-winner.
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Batting Records in Asia Cup
Top run-scorers in Asia cup
| Player | Team | Innings | Total Runs | HS | Ave | SR | 50s/100s |
| Sanath Jayasuriya | Sri Lanka | 24 | 1220 | 130 | 53.04 | 102.52 | 3/6 |
| Kumar Sangakkara | Sri Lanka | 23 | 1075 | 121 | 48.86 | 84.51 | 8/4 |
| Sachin Tendulkar | India | 21 | 971 | 114 | 51.10 | 85.476 | 7/2 |
Most centuries in Asia Cup
| Player | Team | Innings | Total Runs | 50s/100s |
| Sanath Jayasuriya | Sri Lanka | 24 | 1220 | 3/6 |
| Kumar Sangakkara | Sri Lanka | 23 | 1075 | 8/4 |
| Virat Kohli | India | 10* | 613* | 1/3* |
The Sri Lankan duo of Kumar Sangakkara and Sanath Jayasuriya dominate the list of top batters, with them dominating both the runs chart and the list of top centurions. While Jayasuriya heads the pack with 1220 runs and 6 tons in a total of 24 innings, Sangakkara comes in a close 2nd with 1075 runs and 4 centuries in a total of 23 innings. Virat Kohli, the modern day batting legend from India, comes in at number 3 with a total of 971 runs, hitting 3 centuries in just 10 innings, and one should be hoping that the meter keeps running in this edition and in many more to come.
It is to be noted that Shoaib Malik also has 3 centuries in Asia Cup clashes, but he took 5 innings more than Kohli.
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Highest individual scores in Asia cup
| Player | Team | Score | Opposition | SR | Venue | Date | Match Result |
| Virat Kohli | India | 183 (148) | Pakistan | 123.64 | Dhaka | 18 Mar 2022 | Ind won by 6 wkt |
| Younus Khan | Pakistan | 144 (122) | Hong Kong | 118.03 | Colombo | 18 Jul 2004 | Pak won by 173 runs |
| Mushfuqur Rahim | Bangladesh | 144 (150) | Sri Lanka | 96.00 | Dubai | 15 Sep 2018 | Ban won by 137 runs |
Kohli’s 183 came during a successful chase of 330 for India and this remains the champion batters’ highest ODI score till date.
In the second place comes Pakistan’s Younus Khan. Batting first alongside Shoaib Malik, who also scored a century, they piled up a score of 343 against Hong Kong at Mirpur, which later proved to be too much for the young side.
Likewise, Mushfiqur’s Rahim’s epic knock of 144 where the Bangladesh team’s total score was just 261 helped them achieve the famous 137-run victory over the Sri Lankan team in the 2018 Asia Cup opener in Dubai.
Bowling Records in Asia Cup
Top wicket-takers in Asia Cup
| Player | Team | Innings | Wickets | BBI | Ave | ER | 4w/5w |
| Muthiah Muralidaran | Sri Lanka | 24 | 30 | 5/31 | 28.83 | 3.75 | 1/1 |
| Lasith Malinga | Sri Lanka | 14 | 29 | 5/34 | 20.55 | 4.65 | 1/3 |
| Ajantha Mendis | Sri Lanka | 8 | 26 | 6/13 | 10.42 | 3.98 | 2/2 |
Most five-wicket hauls in Asia Cup
| Player | Team | Wicket | Total 5 fers | Strike Rate |
| Lasith Malinga | Sri Lanka | 29 | 3 | 26.51 |
| Ajantha Mendis | Sri Lanka | 26 | 2 | 15.69 |
| Muthiah Muralidaran | Sri Lanka | 30 | 1 | 46.06 |
Just like the batting records, the Sri Lankan trio of Muthiah Muralidaran, Ajantha Mendis and Lasith Malinga also dominate in bowling in Asia Cup. The spin wizard Murali has taken the maximum wickets (30) in ODI Asia cup matches at an economy of just 3.75, while Malinga has taken the most 5-wicket hauls in Asia cup (3), followed by compatriot Mendis.
6 other bowlers have also taken 1 five-wicket haul each in the Asia Cup.
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Best spells in Asia Cup
| Player | Team | BBI | Opposition | Venue | Date | Match Result |
| Ajantha Mendis | Sri Lanka | 6/13 | India | Karachi | 6 Jul 2008 | SL won by 100 runs |
| Aaqib Javed | Bangladesh | 5/19 | India | Sharjah | 7 Apr 1995 | Pak won by 97 runs |
| Arshad Ayub | India | 5/21 | Pakistan | Dhaka | 31 Oct 1988 | Ind won by 4 wickets |
Ajantha Mendis’ famous spell of 6/13 gave Sri Lanka a stunning 100-run win over India in the finals of Asia Cup 2008, as did Aaqib Javed’s 5/19 for Pakistan in 1995.
Arshad Ayub bowled beautifully to take 5/21 in 1988 a match against India, but the Indian side still managed to sail through and won by 4 wickets in a low-scoring game.
Fielding Records in Asia Cup
Most catches in Asia Cup
| Player | Team | Catches | Max Catches in innings | Total Matches |
| Mahela Jayawardene | Sri Lanka | 15 | 3 | 28 |
| Younus Khan | Pakistan | 14 | 3 | 14 |
| Aravinda de Silva | Sri Lanka | 12 | 2 | 24 |
While Mahela Jayawardene has the most catches among non-wicketkeepers in Asia Cup, Younus Khan comes 2nd with 14 catches in a lot less number of matches – a remarkable feat indeed. Aravinda De Silva from Sri Lanka completes the list with 12 catches.
Wicketkeeping records in Asia Cup
Most dismissals
| Player | Team | Dismissals | Catches | Stumping | Matches | MDPG |
| MS Dhoni | India | 36 | 25 | 11 | 19 | 5 |
| Kumar Sangakkara | Sri Lanka | 36 | 27 | 9 | 24 | 4 |
| Moin Khan | Pakistan | 17 | 12 | 5 | 14 | 3 |
*MDPG – Most Dismissal Per Game
The legendary wicketkeepers MS Dhoni and Kumar Sangakkara have 36 dismissals each to their name in Asia Cup, although the former Indian captain’s came in just 19 games as compared to the Sri Lankan’s 24. The next is 17 by Pakistan’s Moin Khan who is also in level with Bangladesh’s Mushfiqur Rahim.
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