Hardik Pandya is not playing in today's Asia Cup 2025 final match between India and Pakistan because he sustained an injury in the previous match against Sri Lanka. He picked up a hamstring strain or niggle, which forced him to leave the match early and ruled him out of the final. Due to the proximity of the final match after the injury, he was unable to recover in time. Consequently, Rinku Singh was brought into the playing XI as his replacement. Hardik was present during the warmups but did not participate in high- intensity drills, confirming the injury was enough to sideline him for the match.