India beat Pakistan twice en route to the final and remain unbeaten in the tournament
Abhishek Sharma tops the run charts while Kuldeep Yadav leads the wickets tally
Pakistan regrouped after a shaky start with wins over Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to seal their spot
Defending champions India take on arch-rivals Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 final at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai, UAE, on Sunday (September 28).
India and Pakistan reached the tournament finale via contrasting journeys, setting up their first-ever title clash in the tournament's 41-year history.
Asia Cup Final 2025: India's Path To The Final
India have not been perfect, so to say, but their campaign has so far been defined by consistency and control, largely thanks to the brilliance of opener Abhishek Sharma and spinner Kuldeep Yadav, both enter the final as leading scorer and wicket-taker respectively.
The Suryakumar Yadav-led 'Men in Blue' began with a nine-wicket win against the UAE, then followed it up with victories over Pakistan by seven wickets and Oman by 21 runs.
Those wins set the tone for the Super Four stage, where they beat Pakistan again, this time by six wickets. The eight-time champions then brushed aside Bangladesh by 41 runs, before surviving a nervy clash in the dead rubber against Sri Lanka. They eventually won the Super Over.
Asia Cup Final 2025: Pakistan's Path To The Final
Pakistan's route was more turbulent, but Salman Ali Agha & Co. will feel that they have picked at the right time.
A commanding 93-run win in the campaign opener against minnows Oman was soon deflated by the shambolic outing against India, and the off-field noise surrounding the 'no handshake' controversy.
The Pakistan Cricket Board's decision to file a complaint against match referee Andy Pycroft, along with the ensuing fallout, did little to help the team's cause.
A 41-run win against the UAE in their final Group A match, an encounter initially shrouded by uncertainty, helped qualify for the Super Four, where they lost to India. However, they regrouped well to beat Sri Lanka by five wickets and Bangladesh by 11 runs.
India Vs Pakistan, Asia Cup 2025 Final: What To Expect?
Having beaten Pakistan twice in the tournament and with a dominant head-to-head record in T20Is, India surely hold a psychological edge. And they will aim to extend their dominance over their bitter rivals.
India will look to end their Asia Cup 2025 campaign unbeaten. Besides having two incomparable openers in Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill, India probably has the strongest lineup in the world currently.
But Pakistan arrive with renewed belief, and they have a chance to flip the losing trend. The last time Pakistan registered a win over India in this format was back in October 2022, and since then, they have lost three successive games.
Despite a rocky start to the Asia Cup 2025, the two-time champions, both in ODI format, clawed their way into the final. Their bowling attack, led by Shaheen Afridi, has found rhythm at the right time, and the middle order has also shown signs of stability.
The India Vs Pakistan Asia Cup final will be live streamed on SonyLiv.
