India chose to ball first against Pakistan as they won the toss in the all-important Asia Cup 2025 final at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday night.
It is an Asia final that has been 41 years in the making, as the neighbors face each other for the first time.
India will be playing without their top bowler, Hardik Pandya.
Pakistan’s skipper said that even though he lost the toss, he would have chosen to bat first anyway even he had won it.
And the Men in Blue are favourites to win compared to the Greenshirts.
India are unbeaten in the event.
The tournament featured eight countries, including Oman, Hong Kong, the UAE, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan.
This is also the third time they have faced each other during the 2025 Asia Cup.
India have won the Asia Cup eight times so far, and Pakistan will have a chance to write a new chapter in the tournament’s history if they win the title.
If the Greenshirts win today, this would be their third title.
In the head-to-head record, India have won the last four encounters they have had with Pakistan in the Twenty20 format.
It is a politically charged meeting, as Pakistan and India were involved in an aerial dogfight in May, and the relations between the two nations have been tense.
The diplomatic and political tensions were also seen on the pitch, when the Indian Captain refused to shake hands with Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha in their first encounter on September 14.
Squads
Pakistan: Fakhar Zaman, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha (capt), Hussain Talat, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed
India: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy