Asia Cup: Pakistan win toss, put India to field first in rivarly clash

DUBAI: Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha won the toss and opted to bat against India in the much-debated rivalry clash at the Asia Cup in Dubai on Sunday.

Since the last encounter between the two arch-rivals in the T20 World Cup 2024, a lot has changed for both sides. New coaches have come in, and there has been an influx of several players. Batting bigwigs Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have retired, while Pakistan moved on from Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam. With the arrival of new players, many potential on-field battles will add to the spice.

India has thoroughly dominated Pakistan in T20Is, boasting a 10-3 record in their favour. After opening their account with a victory, both teams will be keen on extending their winning momentum. Both teams have fielded the same XI, which they used in their campaign openers.

Both teams go unchanged into the marquee contest

Watch #INDvPAK LIVE NOW on the Sony Sports Network TV channels & Sony LIV.#SonySportsNetwork #DPWorldAsiaCup2025 pic.twitter.com/EBywMBcKiL

— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) September 14, 2025

Pakistan skipper Salman Agha explained his decision to bat after winning the toss and said, “Going to bat first. We’ve been playing good cricket, very excited. Looks like a slow wicket. Just want to bat first and put runs on the board. Same side. Have been here for 20-odd days and are used to the conditions”.

India captain Suryakumar Yadav was pleased with fielding first and said during the time of the toss, “We were looking to bowl first, happy with it. We played just one strip away, which was a nice wicket and better to bat on in the night. It’s humid so hoping for some dew. Same team”.

Pakistan (Playing XI): Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Mohammad Haris(w), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha(c), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed

India (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson(w), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy. (ANI)