A look back at India's Asia Cup triumphs

India has always had a strong outing in the Asia Cup. They have won the tournament six times, the most by any nation. They have won the tournament in 1984, 1988, 1990/91, 1995, 2010 & 2016. They are also three times runner-up (1997, 2004 & 2008).

Their win in the 2016 Asia Cup, made India the only team to win the trophy both in the 50 overs & T20 format. They are also the only team to win three consecutive Asia Cups.

So let us take a look at their 6 Asia Cup triumphs, five of which came against the same opponent in the final - Sri Lanka.

UAE 1984

Ravi Shastri & Dilip Vengsarkar with the 1984 Asia Cup

The first edition of the Asia Cup comprised of three teams – India, Pakistan & Sri Lanka. It was a three-match tournament, with the teams playing each other once and the team with the most points, in the end, being declared the champion.

By winning both the matches against Sri Lanka & Pakistan, India were crowned champions. Surinder Khanna was declared the Man of the Series. He also had the most runs in the tournament with 107. Ravi Shastri was the leading wicket-taker with 4 wickets. This Asia Cup also witnessed the debut of Manoj Prabhakar.

Bangladesh 1988

Dilip Vengsarkar with the 1988 Asia Cup

This edition involved 4 teams – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka & Bangladesh. The format involved Round Robin matches with the teams playing each other once and the top two teams advancing to the finals.

India, by virtue of its wins over Pakistan & Bangladesh, came second in the table and qualified for the finals along with Sri Lanka. In the final, India chased down a target of 177 set by Sri Lanka in 37.1 overs. Navjot Singh Sidhu was declared the Man of the Series while India's Arshad Ayub with 9 wickets was the leading wicket-taker, 5 of which were taken in a single match. His spell of 5/21 from 9 overs bowled against Pakistan was the best bowling spell of the tournament.

India 1990/91

Kapil Dev emerged as the leading wicket-taker

This was a 3 team tournament – India, Sri Lanka & Bangladesh. The format remained unchanged. India with one win in the Round Robin match qualified for the final along with Sri Lanka.

Much like their previous two victories, India defeated Sri Lanka in the final to win its third Asia Cup. They were set a target of 205 by Sri Lanka, which they chased down in the 42.1 overs.

Arjuna Ranatunga was the leading run scorer of the tournament with 166 runs. The leading wicket-taker was Kapil Dev with 9 wickets. Navjot Singh Sidhu’s 104 against Bangladesh was one of the highlights of the tournament.

UAE 1995

Mohammed Azharuddin lifting the 1995 Asia Cup

India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka & Bangladesh played in this edition of the tournament. Thanks to their victories against Sri Lanka & Bangladesh, India topped the Round Robin stage. They again met Sri Lanka in the final.

India was again chasing and was set a target of 231 runs by the Sri Lankan side. India took 41.5 overs to reach the target and lift their fourth Asia Cup.

Sachin Tendulkar with 205 runs was the leading batsman of the tournament and Anil Kumble with 7 wickets was the leading wicket-taker. This was India’s third consecutive Asia Cup victory. Navjot Singh Sidhu was adjudged the Man of the Series.

The sole century scored in the tournament came off the bat of Sachin Tendulkar (112 against Sri Lanka in the Round Robin stage). Navjot Singh Sidhu continued his good run in the Asia Cup by scoring back to back 50s in his first two matches in the Round Robin stage.

Sri Lanka 2010

Dhoni with the 2010 Asia Cup

This edition saw 4 teams playing – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka & Bangladesh. The format remained unchanged. India qualified for the final by defeating Bangladesh & Pakistan in the Round Robin stage. Once again they faced Sri Lanka in the final.

Batting first, India set Sri Lanka a target of 269 runs from 50 overs. In response, Sri Lanka were all out for 187 runs. Shahid Afridi with 265 runs was the leading run scorer of the tournament and was also adjudged the Man of the Series. Lasith Malinga with 9 wickets was the tournament’s leading wicket-taker.

Though Pakistan did not make it to the final, Shahid Afridi’s two centuries from 3 matches was the highlight of the tournament.

Bangladesh 2016

Victorious Indian Team at the 2016 Asia Cup

This was the first time the Asia Cup was held in the T20 format. This was a 5 team tournament comprising of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh & UAE. India won all its Round Robin matches to top the table and advance to the final. For a change, unlike the previous finals, their opponent was not Sri Lanka but hosts, Bangladesh.

The final was reduced to 15 overs a side due to rain. Bangladesh batting first, scored 120/5 in their allotted 15 overs. In response, India reached the target in 13.5 overs. Sabbir Rahman of Bangladesh with 176 runs was the leading run scorer of the tournament and was also adjudged the Man of the Series. Al-Amin Hossain of Bangladesh with 11 wickets was the leading wicket-taker.

This was India’s 6th Asia Cup victory, the most by any nation. Rohit Sharma’s 83 against Bangladesh in the Round Robin match was the highest individual score of the tournament. Dinesh Chandimal of Sri Lanka was the only player who managed to score two half-centuries in the tournament.

What is surprising is the fact till date in the history of Asia Cup, there has never been an India vs Pakistan final. But there is always a first time and maybe the 2018 edition will provide us with an opportunity to witness the much-awaited India vs Pakistan final.