India and Pakistan are set for a high-stakes clash in the Asia Cup 2025 on 14th of September, as the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) officially confirmed the tournament schedule on Saturday.
The Asia Cup 2025, to be held in T20 format, will run from 9th to 28th of September and feature 19 matches across two venues—Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Although India holds the hosting rights through the BCCI, the tournament will be played at a neutral venue due to ongoing geopolitical tensions between India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
Six teams will participate in this year’s competition. Group A includes India, Pakistan, UAE, and Oman, while Group B features Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Hong Kong.
The tournament format allows the top two teams from each group to advance to the Super Four stage, where they will each play three matches. The top two from the Super Fours will face off in the final.
India and Pakistan could potentially meet up to three times—once in the group stage, again on 22 September in the Super Fours (if both qualify), and possibly in the final, which would mark the first-ever India-Pakistan final in Asia Cup history.
The tournament’s detailed venue schedule is yet to be released. Notably, this continues the trend of hybrid formats, after both the 2023 Asia Cup and Champions Trophy were split between host and neutral locations due to India-Pakistan travel restrictions.
