T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav throughout a press convention in Mumbai. File
| Photograph Credit score: Emmanual Yogini
“India is taking part in Pakistan, proper? When are they assembly?”
The immigration officer at Delhi airport posed a fast question on discovering out the aim of journey to the United Arab Emirates. Geopolitical realities, within the aftermath of a four-day navy battle between the neighbours in Might that adopted a terror assault in Pahalgam, could have solid doubts on the Asia Cup within the months main up, however now that the seventeenth version of the continental occasion is getting underway on Tuesday (September 9, 2025), there may be no disputing the fixture that can occupy centrestage over the following three weeks.
As has been the case in multi-nation tournaments for the previous decade, it’s not by coincidence that India — the official host — and Pakistan have been drawn collectively in Group A alongside United Arab Emirates and debutant Oman. It signifies that Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka should slug it out to be among the many two groups from Group B, additionally comprising Hong Kong, that advance to the following stage. If issues go in line with plan, India will face Pakistan as soon as extra within the Tremendous 4 part, with a 3rd assembly attainable offered each groups enter the summit conflict on September 28.
Past the large draw that India versus Pakistan continues to be within the eyes of the organisers regardless that current contests counsel in any other case, the Asia Cup’s survival has been helped by its flexibility since 2016 in switching between the 50-over and T20 variations based mostly on the calls for of the cricketing calendar.
The earlier occasion in 2023, received by India, was held within the 50-over format forward of the ODI World Cup that 12 months. This version, that includes eight sides for the primary time within the competitors’s four-decade existence, shall be a T20 affair to facilitate preparations for subsequent 12 months’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. Afghanistan will tackle Hong Kong within the opener on the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
The Males in Blue, who received the T20 World Cup final 12 months, will kick off their marketing campaign towards UAE in Dubai on Wednesday. After a chronic break from nationwide responsibility because the finish of the Check sequence towards England on August 4, India’s gamers shall be desirous to get again into aggressive mode at a venue the place they’ve fond recollections of profitable the ICC Champions Trophy simply six months in the past. That there’s intense competitors for locations is distinctly clear from the absence of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer within the 15-member contingent.
Based mostly on current proof, there isn’t any apparent challenger to India’s would possibly. Sri Lanka was skittled out for 80 in a five-wicket defeat to Zimbabwe on September 6 whereas Afghanistan and Pakistan blew cold and hot within the just-concluded tri-series that the latter received. Bangladesh has curiously acquired the higher of each Pakistan and Sri Lanka of late, but it surely has proven a worrying pattern of faltering in crunch conditions towards India.
If there’s a ray of hope for these groups, it’s that pre-tournament expectations don’t all the time play out on the Asia Cup. In any case, there has by no means been an India-Pakistan last in all these years.
Printed – September 08, 2025 04:21 pm IST
