Finance
India will face archrivals Pakistan in the highly awaited ICC Champions Trophy match on Sunday at Dubai International Stadium.
India, headed by Rohit Sharma, began their campaign with an easy six-wicket win over Bangladesh on Wednesday. Pakistan, on the other hand, lost by 60 runs to New Zealand in the tournament’s opening match in Karachi earlier this week.
It will be a must-win game for reigning champions Pakistan to remain in contention for a semi-final spot in Group A, while a win for India will essentially guarantee a place in the final four of the eight-team tournament.
In their last ODI match in the 2023 World Cup in Ahmedabad, India earned an overwhelming seven-wicket victory as captain Rohit and Shreyas Iyer scored half-centuries to retain their winless record intact in the tournament.
Indian speed spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who returned to international cricket just before the World Cup after a more than a year injury layoff, along with Mohammed Siraj and Hardik Pandya, supported their captain’s decision to bowl first. The trio took two scalps each to finish off the visitors for a measly 191. Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja, both Indian spinners, split four wickets.
However, India suffered a setback in their most recent Champions Trophy game with Pakistan, losing the 2017 title match at The Oval and missing out on their second silverware of the tournament.
Meanwhile, India has a psychological edge of remaining unbeaten versus Pakistan in the previous six ODIs (including 2023 Asia Cup group stage washout) since 2018.
The two sides last played against each other in the 2024 T20 World Cup group stage match in New York. Men in Blue dominated the encounter and won by nine runs as Jasprit Bumrah returned with the figures of 3-14 to bag the Player of the Match accolade. India went on to win the title, beating South Africa in the final to lift their second T20 World Cup trophy after 2007.
Here’s all you need to know ahead of India vs Pakistan Champions Trophy clash:
When: February 23, Sunday
Where: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Time: The match is scheduled to begin at 2:30 pm IST while the toss will take place at 2 pm.
Broadcast details: India vs Pakistan will be broadcast on Star Sports Network.
Live Streaming: India vs Pakistan will be live-streamed on JioHotstar.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy.
Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (c, wk), Salman Ali Agha (vc), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Source: IANS
