Photo: PCB
KARACHI:
India captain Suryakumar Yadav has won the toss and decided to bowl first in the crunch clash against Pakistan on Sunday.
The Super Four clash of the Asia Cup 2025 is being played in the wake of handshake and match-referee controversies.
As expected, Pakistan made two changes in their playing XI with Faheen Ashraf and Husain Talat in for Khuhdil Shah and Hasan Nawaz.
Meanwhile, India also made two changes to their side with Bumrah and Varun back in the playing XI.
Like the previous game, neither captains shake hands after the toss.
Pakistan cancelled its pre-match press conference on Saturday, with the team management not sharing any specific reasons behind the move.
It is believed that the decision was taken to avoid having to discuss the handshakes.
“Pakistan will not be holding their pre-match press conference today,” said a message from the Asian Cricket Council.
Meanwhile, Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav sidestepped the no-handshake issue ahead of the Asia Cup rematch against Pakistan, choosing to focus instead on the bat and ball.
The Group A clash between the fierce rivals last Sunday ended on a bitter note when Indian players refused to shake hands with their opponents.
It was the first meeting between the regional neighbours since a four-day cross-border conflict in May left more than 70 people dead.
Teams:
India: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy.
Pakistan: Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha (capt), Hasan Nawaz, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed.