Sat Feb 22 18:21:41 UTC 2025: ## India Favored to Sweep Pakistan in Champions Trophy Clash

**Dubai, UAE** – India and Pakistan will face off in a high-stakes Champions Trophy match on Sunday, February 23rd, at 2:30 PM local time at the Dubai International Stadium. India enters the match with a perfect record against Pakistan at this venue, having won both previous ODI matches played there.

In September 2018, India defeated Pakistan twice at the Dubai International Stadium; once in the Asia Cup by 8 wickets, and again in the Super Four stage by 9 wickets. In the first match, Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the Player of the Match, taking 3 wickets for 15 runs. Rohit Sharma (52) led the Indian batting charge, while Shikhar Dhawan (46), Dinesh Karthik (31*), and Ambati Rayudu (31*) also contributed significantly. The second match saw centuries from Rohit Sharma (111*) and Shikhar Dhawan (114) powering India to victory.

While Pakistan leads the overall ODI head-to-head record with 73 wins to India’s 57 (with 5 inconclusive results from 135 total matches), India’s dominance in Dubai makes them the clear favorites. This match is crucial for both teams. A Pakistan loss would severely hamper their chances of reaching the semi-finals, while a victory for India would virtually guarantee their place in the next round. India comes into the match off a win against Bangladesh, while Pakistan lost their opening game to New Zealand.

Likely playing XIs:

**India:** Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Shami.

**Pakistan:** Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (c, wk), Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha (vc), Tayyab Tahir, Khushdil Shah, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi. (Note: Imam-ul-Haq is expected to replace the injured Fakhar Zaman.)

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