Dubai: India face Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday, September 28, but star all-rounder Hardik Pandya will miss the match due to a niggle picked up in the previous game. Pandya is among three players sitting out from India’s Super Over win against Sri Lanka on Friday.

At the toss, India captain Suryakumar Yadav announced the team would bowl first and confirmed Hardik Pandya, along with Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana, would not feature. “We will bowl first. It looks a good wicket. Unfortunately, Hardik misses out. Arshdeep and Harshit also miss out. Bumrah, Dube and Rinku come in,” he said.

Pandya had suffered cramps during India’s last Super Four match against Sri Lanka. He bowled only a single over in the second innings before being sidelined for most of India’s 202-run defence. Bowling coach Morne Morkel noted that Hardik would undergo assessment before a final decision on his participation.

What are the teams’ lineups?

India have made three changes to their playing XI, bringing in Jasprit Bumrah, Shivam Dube, and Rinku Singh. Pakistan, on the other hand, have retained the same XI that faced Bangladesh in the previous match.

Pakistan’s Playing XI: Sahibzada Farhan, Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha(c), Hussain Talat, Mohammad Haris(w), Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed

India’s Playing XI: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson(w), Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy

How do India and Pakistan compare in T20Is?

This final marks the first Asia Cup meeting between India and Pakistan since the tournament began in 1984. India reached the final with six consecutive wins and remain unbeaten in the event, while Pakistan have lost only to India so far.

In T20I history, India hold a strong record over Pakistan, winning 12 of the 15 encounters between the teams. This includes their victory against Pakistan in the 2007 T20 World Cup final.