(Courtesy :Â AFP)
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India has won the Asia Cup seven times, followed by Sri Lanka (six) and Pakistan (two).
A worldwide competition known as Asia Cup is held every two years. With three teams, this competition began in 1984. The number of teams grew over time, reaching six. It has successfully hosted 15 editions so far. The inaugural champions of the competition were Team India.
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ODI and T20I formats have been used for this tournament. There have been two T20I and thirteen ODI iterations. In terms of overall victories, Sri Lanka has six, Pakistan has two, and India has seven. Here, we'll look at the winners of the Asia Cup's ODI matches so far in its existence. Notably, the T20I format was only used for the 2016 and 2022 tournaments.
Here is the list of winners of the Asia Cup held in ODI formats:
1. 1984 – India
1984 Asia Cup. (Image Source: Getty Images)
The first game was held in the UAE. The competition featured Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and India. Each team competed against the other two teams in a game. India won both contests and the competition to take home the inaugural Asia Cup.
2. 1986 – Sri Lanka
India, the reigning champions, sat out the second edition in 1986. Bangladesh thus participated in the tournament, which was held in Sri Lanka, for the first time. Sri Lanka and Pakistan advanced to the Colombo final. Sri Lanka won the match by a margin of five wickets to take the title.
3. 1988 – India
India returned in the third season, which was contested in Bangladesh in 1988, after skipping the second season. And they once again won the championship. Each team played once in the group stage of the competition, which featured four teams. The finals were qualified for by Sri Lanka and India. India defeated Sri Lanka in the finals by six wickets thanks to Navjot Sidhu's score of 76.
4. 1990-91 – India
In the following edition, India still held the top spot. In 1990–1991 it was performed in India. There were only three teams present, and Pakistan was not a participant. Sri Lanka and India advanced to the finals. Sanjay Manjrekar's unbeaten 75 helped India win the final seven wickets. In four editions, India has won three championships.
5. 1995 – India
The 1995 Pepsi Asia Cup was held in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. It included four teams competing. India and Sri Lanka both achieved finals qualification. India won the championship match again, defeating Sri Lanka by an eight-wicket margin. While Sachin Tendulkar scored the most runs (205), Navjot Sidhu received the player of the series award.
6. 1997 – Sri Lanka
Four teams in total competed in the 1997 Asia Cup, which was held in Bangladesh. After finishing in the top two of their group, Sri Lanka and India faced off in another final. But this time, Sri Lanka managed to defeat India by eight wickets to capture their second championship. Arjuna Ranatunga scored the most runs (272) and was named the competition's best player.
7. 2000 – Pakistan
Bangladesh hosted the Asia Cup for the second time in 2000. Four teams participated in the competition. India failed to get to the championship match for the first time in the tournament's history. The finals this time featured Pakistan and Sri Lanka. By defeating Sri Lanka in the championship match, Pakistan became the first nation to ever win the Asia Cup. The player of the tournament was Yousuf Youhana, who generated the most runs (295).
8. 2004 – Sri Lanka
After a four-year hiatus, the eighth edition of the Indian Oil Asia Cup was held. With the addition of Hong Kong and the UAE, there were now six teams competing in this significant tournament. There were two sets of three teams each for this game. Sri Lanka and India reached the championship game. Sri Lanka won the championship by 25 runs despite scoring only 209 runs. The tournament's player of the year award went to Sanath Jayasuriya.
9. 2008 – Sri Lanka
In the ninth edition, Sri Lanka successfully defended their championship. Pakistan hosted the Asia Cup for the first time this year. Star Cricket served as its sponsor. India and Sri Lanka, two of the six teams, advanced to the finals for the third time in four iterations. Sri Lanka scored a crushing victory of 100 runs. Player of the competition went to Ajantha Mendis.
10. 2010 – Pakistan
In 2010, Sri Lanka hosted the Asia Cup. It returned to having four teams after two seasons in a row with six teams. Sri Lanka advanced to the finals for the tenth time in a row. India earned a spot in their ninth championship. Micromax provided sponsorship for the competition. India defeated Sri Lanka by 81 runs this time. In the finals, Dinesh Karthik scored 66 runs and was named Man of the Match. It was India's fifth championship.
11. 2012 – Pakistan
The 2012 Asia Cup was held in Bangladesh. In the tournament, there were four teams. India and Sri Lanka failed to get to the championship game for the first time in history. Pakistan and Bangladesh were playing in the championship. Pakistan triumphed by two runs in a thrilling match to win the Asia Cup for the second time. Shakib Al Hasan, an all-arounder for Bangladesh, was named the tournament's winner.
12. 2014 – Sri Lanka
Bangladesh hosted the Asia Cup for the second time in a row in 2014. Afghanistan participated in the event for the first time, which featured five teams. Sri Lanka and Pakistan both attained tournament finals eligibility. The final was won by Sri Lanka by five wickets, and Lasith Malinga took 5/56. Lahiru Thirimanne led all scorers with 279 runs scored, earning player of the competition honours.
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13. 2018 – India
The T20I version of the Asia Cup ended in 2016, and the 2018 tournament used the ODI format. With a total of six teams, it was staged in the UAE. The super four included Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India. India and Bangladesh competed in the final. India won the championship by three wickets, led by Rohit Sharma. Shikhar Dhawan received the tournament's player of the year title for scoring the most runs (342).
