Arch rivals India and Pakistan are likely to face each other in September this year as Asian Cricket Council has zeroed in on the month as the window for the Asia Cup 2025 that will be played in T20 format. (More Cricket News)
As per a report published in Cricbuzz on Thursday, the second and fourth week of September 2025 have been identified as the window for the continental tournament which will feature eight teams this year. The report states that 19 games will be held in the competition which is to be hosted, most likely, in UAE where India are currently playing their Champions Trophy matches as part of a hybrid arrangement after the BCCI refused to travel to the host country Pakistan.
BCCI has the hosting rights for the 2025 Asia Cup but the report states that due to the poor relations between India and Pakistan, the tournament will be held in UAE. Sri Lanka too is being considered to host the competitoin.
There is a possibility of as many as three India-Pakistan games in the upcoming Asia Cup. Alongside India and Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, UAE, Oman, and Hong Kong will be participating in the continental event. Nepal, a rising cricketing nation who featured in the 2024 T20 World Cup, failed to qualify for the 2025 Asia Cup.
Teams will be divided in two groups of four each with India and Pakistan again likely to be in the same pool.
Top two teams from both the groups will advance to the Super 4 stage where India and Pakistan could meet for the second time. The top two teams from the Super 4s will clash in final which keeps the possibility of a third India-Pakistan game alive.
The two teams recently met in Dubai in the Champions Trophy where India defeated Pakistan with ease.
