IND vs PAK: Watch - Babar Azam Sheds Light On India-Pakistan Rivalry Ahead Of Asia Cup Encounter

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam will be leading his side in the Asia Cup 2023. The tournament is being played in the hybrid model with Pakistan being the official hosts. Four out of the 13 matches will be played in Pakistan. Rest nine matches including the final will be played in Sri Lanka.

Pakistan will begin their campaign against Nepal in Multan on August 30. They next face India on September 2. Heading into this tournament Pakistan are number two in the ICC ODI rankings while India are placed second. 

Pakistan and India have beaten each other twice in the last two years. Pakistan won the T20 World Cup 2021 match followed by the Asia Cup 2022 Super 4 match. India beat their arch-rivals once in the Asia Cup league stage and then in the T20 World Cup 2022 in Melbourne. 

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Speaking to Star Sports, Babar Azam opened up on the India-Pakistan rivalry. He said how it is the most followed cricket match in the history of the game and how people wait for the contest with bated breath. 

WATCH: Babar Azam Shares His Opinion On India-Pakistan Rivalry

.@babarazam258 has had his opinion on the #INDvPAK rivalry!

Put your #HandsUpForIndia this #AsiaCup2023#Cricket pic.twitter.com/xPFBlhqLJN

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) August 26, 2023

“India-Pakistan matches have been a big rivalry, the whole world watches the contest, they enjoy the quality of cricket played and as a team we enjoy the contest,” said Babar.

Further speaking on the quality of IND-PAK matches in recent times, Babar said” the quality of cricket is good in these matches and also competitive. People who wait for this match for a long time inspire both teams to do well on the ground”.

India have won the Asia Cup title seven times, having won last in 2018 under Rohit Sharma’s leadership. Pakistan, on the other hand, have won the tournament twice. They won the Asia Cup last in 2012.

The tournament is a good opportunity for all the top Asian teams to finetune their squads in the build-up to the 2023 ODI World Cup. India and Pakistan are placed alongside Nepal in Group A. Group B has Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. 

India and Pakistan Squads For Asia Cup 2023

Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Tayyab Tahir, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Haris, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi.

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumraj, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Sanju Samson (travelling reserve).

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