Pakistan skipper Mohammad Rizwan won the toss and opted to bat in Dubai. It’s the long-awaited showdown, the one cricketers make a note of in their calendar the moment they see tournament schedules published. India-Pakistan cricket is not merely the largest of all cricket’s rivalries but arguably one of sports’ greatest rivalries overall. This is the game that requires no foreword—the one that has an entire nation held hostage and gripped by sheer fascination.
Divergent Begins to the Tournament
As these two sides clash in this crucial ICC Champions Trophy match, they approach it with divergent starts to their tournaments.
Pakistan got off to a bad start in their tournament, enduring their third consecutive defeat at the hands of New Zealand in the span of a week. Their 60-run loss was characterized by poor bowling and a disappointing batting effort, not managing to mount a credible chase.
India, on the other hand, began their tournament in style against Bangladesh. Even though they let Bangladesh mount a brief revival in Dubai, a clinical and risk-free chase, marked by a century by Shubman Gill, sealed India’s win. Riding this momentum, India enters the marquee game with confidence.