Champions Trophy clash: India to face Pakistan in group stage match at 2.30 p.m. IST

Pakistan head coach Aaqib Javed noted that the high-stakes nature of India-Pakistan games offers players the best chance to showcase their skills, and the extra pressure on the players gives this encounter its charm. 

“It doesn’t matter if it’s a knockout or whatever. It is beyond game, and that’s the beauty. If you look at the positive, it’s the best time and chance for any individual or team to make a mark,” said Javed. 

“What is pressure? It is the thought of what will happen before and after a game. No one knows. Right now, we are all guessing what will happen in this match. This is the beauty of it.”

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Former captain Sourav Ganguly thinks the current Indian team is not only better than Pakistan but is also the favourite to win the ongoing Champions Trophy. 

Ganguly, who played a lot against Pakistan, said the neighbouring country would need some special effort to beat India in their Group-A engagement on Sunday (February 23, 2025).

“India is a powerful white-ball team. In the last 25 years, India has lost only once to Pakistan in a world tournament. India is the favourite for this tournament. It won’t be easy for Pakistan,” said Ganguly, who was named the brand ambassador of construction chemical manufacturer Vura here on Friday, February 21, 2025.

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India: Rohit Sharma (Capt.), Shubman Gill (vice-capt.), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, K.L, Rahul (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy. 

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Salman Ali Agha (vice-capt.), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi.

Match officials: On-field umpires: Paul Reiffel and Richard Illingworth; TV umpire: Michael Gough; Fourth umpire: Adrian Holdstock; Match Referee: David Boon.

The Men in Blue have come out on top in five of their last six ODI meetings (the other was a no-result because of rain). The last time Pakistan triumphed was in the 2017 summit clash of this very tournament.

The two outfits will enter the ‘Ring of Fire’ in contrasting frames of mind. Fresh off a convincing win against Bangladesh in the opener, India looks like a well-oiled machine. Pakistan, on the other hand, has its back to the wall, having lost its first match to New Zealand and desperately seeking a victory to stay afloat. 

As is often the case in Indo-Pak encounters, this latest instalment is set to be a battle between India’s batting might and Pakistan’s pace attack.

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