The stage is set for the high-voltage showdown between India and Pakistan in the Champions Trophy 2025, scheduled for Sunday, February 23, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The entire cricketing world is eagerly awaiting this marquee clash, as the two arch-rivals prepare to battle it out in a game that could define their tournament campaign.
India’s Strong Start & Pakistan’s Must-Win Scenario
India comes into the match with momentum on their side, having dominated Bangladesh in their opening game. Their bowling unit, comprising both spinners and seamers, restricted Bangladesh to 228, and despite a mini-collapse in the middle order, Shubman Gill’s magnificent century ensured a smooth chase.
Pakistan, on the other hand, finds itself in a precarious position after suffering a 60-run defeat against New Zealand. Their net run rate (-1.200) has taken a massive hit, making this encounter against India a must-win game. The Mohammad Rizwan-led side struggled in their chase of 321, with Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel failing to counter the Kiwi pace attack. To make matters worse, Fakhar Zaman sustained an injury while fielding and has been ruled out of the tournament, forcing Pakistan to rethink their batting order. Imam-ul-Haq has been named as his replacement, but his lack of recent ODI experience might see Kamran Ghulam slot into the middle order instead.
Team Combination & Possible XI
India is expected to stick with their winning combination, despite discussions among pundits about including mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy to exploit Dubai’s spin-friendly surface. However, a change in the playing XI seems unlikely at this stage.
India’s Predicted Playing XI:
- Rohit Sharma (c)
- Shubman Gill
- Virat Kohli
- Shreyas Iyer
- KL Rahul (wk)
- Hardik Pandya
- Axar Patel
- Ravindra Jadeja
- Harshit Rana
- Mohammed Shami
- Kuldeep Yadav
For Pakistan, Fakhar Zaman’s injury has left a void at the top of the order, forcing the management to find a quick solution. The team’s fragile batting has been a concern, and they might reshuffle their order to bring in more stability.
Pakistan’s Predicted Playing XI:
- Babar Azam
- Saud Shakeel
- Mohammad Rizwan (c & wk)
- Salman Agha
- Kamran Ghulam
- Tayyab Tahir
- Khushdil Shah
- Shaheen Afridi
- Naseem Shah
- Haris Rauf
- Abrar Ahmed
Dubai Pitch Report & Match Conditions
The Dubai surface has historically favored spinners, a trend seen in India’s previous match against Bangladesh. Batting under lights is expected to be difficult, as acknowledged by Shubman Gill in his pre-match conference. Teams will likely aim for a total of 270+ while batting first to put pressure on the opposition in a chase under challenging conditions.
With India looking to consolidate their dominance and Pakistan fighting for survival, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Will Virat Kohli rise to the occasion and silence critics with a big hundred, as predicted by Harbhajan Singh? Or will Babar Azam and his men pull off a historic upset to keep their campaign alive? The answer awaits in Dubai’s electrifying atmosphere on Sunday.
