Former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batter Abhinav Mukund went for specialists over batting depth in his preferred Team India playing 11 for their Asia Cup 2025 opener against the UAE (via ESPN Cricinfo). The game will be played in Dubai on Wednesday, September 10.Mukund went with Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill as his two openers, breaking up the recently successful Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma opening partnership. The Mumbai Indians (MI) duo of Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav came in at No. 3 and 4, followed by star all-rounder Hardik Pandya at No. 5.IPL 2025 winning wicket-keeper Jitesh Sharma of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) was Mukund's No.6, followed by spin-bowling all-rounder Axar Patel at No. 7.While most experts have gone with Shivam Dube as the extra batting option in their 11, Mukund urged Team India to go for four specialist bowlers from No. 8 to 11.The former batter picked the world-class spin-bowling duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakaravarthy at No. 8 and 9. Mukund's final two spots included the pace-bowling pair of Arshdeep Singh and Jasprit Bumrah.Abhinav Mukund's India playing 11 for Asia Cup 2025 opener vs UAEAbhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Jitesh Sharma, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah"Don't see the necessity for India to have eight batters" - Abhinav MukundAbhinav Mukund believes Team India would boast a better balance with the extra bowling option of Kuldeep Yadav over picking eight batters in their 11. The Men in Blue went with the eight-batter option in the 2024 T20 World Cup, where they triumphed without losing a single game.India have predominantly prioritized batting depth over specialists across formats since Gautam Gambhir took over as head coach in the middle of last year."I don't see the necessity for India to have eight batters and I would like to have an extra bowling option in terms of bringing Kuldeep Yadav for Shivam Dube. I understand India have been tempted to play those eight batters and extend their batting in all formats, even Tests," said Mukund (via the aforementioned source) (1:12)He continued:"But, I like Kuldeep in there, just have an extra spinner because Axar can bowl in the powerplay. It gives you an extra bowling option and spinners will be effective in the bigger grounds of Dubai. How much can you trust Shivam Dube's bowling? That's the question. Do you want him as an extra batter or are you picking him as an extra bowling option? I would rather have four specialist bowlers."Team India's path towards Asia Cup glory will include matches against the UAE, Pakistan, and Oman in the group stages, followed by the Super Fours and the final, should they qualify for the same.