Rewritten Article: Dubai (UAE), February 22: Ahead of the crucial ICC Champions Trophy 2025 clash between Pakistan and India, former Pakistan cricketer Azam Khan extended his best wishes to the Mohammad Rizwan-led team, emphasizing that the side which plays better will emerge victorious.
This heavyweight battle is crucial for Pakistan as they aim to keep their title defense alive, following a 60-run loss to New Zealand in their tournament opener. If Pakistan falters against India in this high-pressure encounter on Sunday, they will need favorable results in other matches to stay in contention. However, Khan believes the tournament will be far more exciting if Pakistan manages to win this highly anticipated match.
“I wish the best of luck to the Pakistan Cricket Team. It’s just a game. It will be a high-voltage encounter, and the team which makes fewer mistakes will win the match,” Azam Khan told ANI.
Discussing the historic rivalry between the two nations, Khan remarked, “The rivalry between India and Pakistan is off the field. In the last few years, the matches between both the teams have been played in a friendly manner.”
While India has dominated the 50-over and T20 World Cups, Pakistan holds a 3-2 advantage in Champions Trophy encounters, with a memorable 180-run victory over India in the 2017 final. Heading into this clash, Pakistan has momentum from previous victories, whereas India began their campaign with a comfortable six-wicket win against Bangladesh.
Squads:
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.
Pakistan:
Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Imam-ul-Haq, 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.