India vs Pakistan rivalry reignites in Dubai at Champions Trophy: Match Preview
Cricket’s fiercest rivals will lock horns in a battle that will prove pivotal to the pair’s ICC Champions Trophy aspirations.
In the world of cricket, it doesn’t get much bigger than this.⭐
Dating back to 1952, India vs Pakistan is a rivalry that’s not only stood the test of time, but continues to grow and evolve. These South Asian nations find another gear when they meet.
Anticipation for this encounter has reached fever pitch, given their last 50-over encounter was way back in 2023 at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, where India claimed a seven-wicket win. The two sides also met at last year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, where India prevailed by just six runs.
It’s reached the point of desperation already for Pakistan, who simply need to win if they’re any chance of progressing to the semi-finals in their home tournament.
Squads:
Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy
How to watch the ICC Champions Trophy 2025
Recent form:
Pakistan: The hosts’ recent ODI form appears match-up-dependant. There’s no denying that New Zealand have the wood over them, having already beaten them three times in 2025, including in the tournament opener. But Pakistan also beat powerhouse South Africa in the lead-up to the Champions Trophy, which follows up their 3-0 ODI series sweep of the Proteas in December last year.
India: They’re eight wins from nine games in white-ball cricket this calendar year so far, and unbeaten from four in ODIs. India dominated England 3-0 leading into the Champions Trophy, before taking care of Bangladesh in their first tournament hitout. They’ve shown they can overcome the absence of Jasprit Bumrah and match it with anyone.
Players in focus:
Pakistan: Babar Azam
The star shotmaker recently lost his status as the game’s No.1 Men’s ODI batter, to the player listed directly below in this match preview. Babar will have a point to prove and looms as a critical wicket for India to hone in on. 2024 was a lean year, by Babar’s lofty standards, but could his 64 against the Kiwis the other day be the confidence-boosting knock that returns him to world-beating form?
India: Shubman Gill
There’s nothing controversial about this pick, after his recent ODI exploits. Shubman Gill is the ICC Men’s top-ranked One-Day International batter, leap-frogging Babar in the buildup to the tournament, and is on track to further separate himself from the chasing pack given his ton in India’s opening Champions Trophy match. Pakistan will be planning, scheming, hoping and praying that they find a way to remove India’s 25-year-old opener.
How to watch:
India: JioStar (Live streaming on Jio Hotstar, Television coverage on Star and Network 18 channels)
Pakistan: PTV and Ten Sports, Streaming options: Myco and Tamasha app
UAE and MENA: CricLife Max and CricLife Max2, Streaming option: STARZPLAY
UK: Live broadcasting on Sky Sports Cricket, Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Action, Digital coverage via SkyGO, NOW and Sky Sports App
USA and Canada: WillowTV, Streaming on Willow by Cricbuzz app (Hindi coverage available)
Caribbean: ESPNCaribbean on TV, Streaming via ESPN Play Caribbean app
Australia: PrimeVideo (coverage available in Hindi too)
New Zealand: Sky Sport NZ, digital coverage via Now and SkyGo app.
South Africa and sub-Saharan territories: SuperSport and SuperSport App
Bangladesh: Nagorik TV and T Sports for linear broadcast, digital via Toffee app
Afghanistan: ATN
Sri Lanka: Maharaja TV (TV1 on Linear), Digital via Sirasa
The games can also be viewed on ICC.tv (In select territories)
