India chase semi-final spot, while Pakistan fight for survival as arch-rivals lock horns in high-stakes CT fixture
India players during their training session in Dubai on Saturday. Pic/PTI
Contrary to norm, the build-up hasn’t been prolonged and sustained. There has been no interminable wait for the action to begin, no great time to whip up passion and sentiment. The hybrid model of the Champions Trophy has ensured that the marquee clash in any global cricket tournament has almost sneaked up on us.
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Must-win tie for Pak
Sunday at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium will mark another chapter in the storied India-Pakistan rivalry. The two protagonists have the same agenda in mind — victory — but for vastly contrasting reasons. A second successive win will take India a long way towards a place in the semi-finals, while Pakistan need the two points to keep themselves in contention following their 60-run loss to New Zealand in Karachi on Wednesday.
Also Read: CT 2025, IND vs PAK: "When you play against India, it’s a special feeling": Aaqib Javed
Pakistan players warm up in Dubai on Friday. Pic/Getty Images
For the outside world, this is a massive clash with added pressure, but players from both sides have always played under pressure, whether against each other or anyone else. In both countries, defeats aren’t taken kindly; over a period of time, cricketers from both sides of the border have come to understand that while India v Pakistan can never be just another cricket match, it is still a game of cricket where the team that holds its nerve and is able to focus on the immediate is the one that will come out on the right side of the result more often than not.
In stark contrast to their 1-15 record against India in World Cups of the two limited-overs varieties, Pakistan lead the head-to-head in the Champions Trophy 3-2. The last of those wins came in the final of the last edition, in June 2017 at The Oval when Fakhar Zaman smashed a blazing hundred to set up his side’s 180-run victory. Fakhar was expected to be one of the leading lights this time around too, but he injured himself very early during the loss to New Zealand, and is out of the tournament tending to his damaged abdominal muscles. It’s a huge blow for the tournament hosts and the defending champions because the left-hander is capable of cashing in on the Powerplay and getting his team off to cracking starts.
Where India wear a settled and confident look and have been playing for the last fortnight like the No. 1 ODI team in the world that they are, Pakistan have blown hot and cold. Before the Karachi loss to the Kiwis earlier in the week, they also lost to the Kiwis in the final of a triangular series. Their pace bowlers, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf, have been decidedly below par and are well aware that if they are even slightly off their disciplines, they will be ruthlessly punished by Rohit Sharma.
Gill in golden touch
The captain’s fiery riposte to Bangladesh’s 228 on a slowing deck was instrumental in India comfortably overcoming mid-innings jitters, though it was his deputy who understandably walked away with all the plaudits. Shubman Gill is in the middle of a rich vein of form and from a team perspective, it will be vital for him to build on two half-centuries and as many hundreds in his last four ODIs for India to extend their hegemony over their fierce rivals in ICC tournaments.
05
No. of ODIs India have won against Pakistan since their 2017 Champions Trophy final defeat to the arch-rivals. One game was washed out in 2023
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