In a match going down the wire, Ravindra Jadeja and Bhuvaneshwar Kumar's sensible knock helped India pip Bangladesh by three wickets in a thrilling Asia Cup final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium here on Saturday.

The win also shattered Bangladesh's dream of their maiden Asia Cup title while the Rohit Sharma-led Indian side clinched the prestigious title for a record seven times.

Chasing a modest 223-run target, India lost wickets at regular intervals to make the contest unpredictable, thanks to a disciplined Bangladesh bowling attack.

However, in a match going down the wire, Jadeja (23) and Bhuvneshwar's (21) rose up to the occassion and their knock came at at a time when their team needed the most.

The duo were involved in a 45-run partnership as India reach closer to the target of 223 runs before Jadhav (23) and Kuldeep (5) guided India home in a match which went to the final ball.

For Bangladesh, Mustafizur Rahman and Rubel Hossain picked two wickets each while Nazmul, Mortaza and Mahmudullah bagged one wicket apiece.

Earlier, opener Liton Das' brilliant century had helped Bangladesh post 222.

For India, Kuldeep scalped three wickets while Jadhav took two wickets.

‘ready for captaincy’

His record as stand-in captain has been quite impressive and Rohit Sharma on Saturday made it clear that whenever the opportunity comes along, he would be "ready" for full-time captaincy.

Under Rohit, India have won two close multi-nation tournaments — the T20 tri-nation in Sri Lanka and now the Asia Cup 50-over tournament.

A three-time IPL winning captain of Mumbai Indians, Rohit was asked if he is ready for a long-term leadership role in future.

"Definitely. We have just won so I will surely be ready (for captaincy). Whenever the opportunity comes, I will be ready," a smiling Rohit told reporters after India' Asia Cup triumph.

There are challenges of a stand-in captain, Rohit admitted, adding that the main objective is to allow players to play freely without thinking about their places in the team.

"It's a challenge for any team when few of your senior players are rested. Obviously they will make a comeback and few of the guys have to miss out. Every team is doing that and also guys understand that.

"It's up to them whenever they get an opportunity they make it big and make it count but for us — myself as a captain and our coach, we have to make sure that they have the liberty to go out and play their game without feeling any pressure," said Rohit.

"I understand the dynamics of this team, how we play our cricket and how we want to go forward as a team. I think in this tournament we have ticked all the boxes," Rohit looked satisfied after accomplishing his task.

Rohit made it clear that his philosophy of leadership is to help players shed insecurities while playing for the country. He in fact assured the likes of Ambati Rayudu and Dinesh Karthik that they will be playing all games.

"When we came here, I wanted to give them the assurance that they will be playing all games. That's how you make players. If you know after two games you are going to get dropped, it's not easy for any player.

"I wanted to give everybody a fair run and play more games. That's how you understand a player's capabilities. One odd game, you can't judge a player," said Rohit

He agreed that No's 4 and 6 are still not settled and the picture would be clearer closer to the World Cup.