A dominant India beat Pakistan by seven wickets with 25 balls to spare in the Asia Cup matchg in Dubai on Sunday.
With a five-match T20I series in October-November in Australia, five T20Is against South Africa at home in December and five T20Is against New Zealand at home in January 2026, Team India will now look to test itself, its combinations and youngsters against some of the world's best T20I teams ahead of the T20 WC 2026, which will start in early 2026.
The India vs Bangladesh rivalry has gotten bitter in recent years, thanks to the partisan young fans, many of whom perceive India as an adversary.
This was India's third victory in a row against Pakistan and their 11th victory overall against the arch-rivals in 14 T20 matches.
Shubman Gill enjoyed a phenomenal run with the bat in England, piling up 754 runs at an average of 75.40 with four centuries.
After days of off-field drama, Team India was back on the field in Dubai at the ICC Academy, sharpening their skills ahead of the final Group A clash against Oman.
'Though I would like to see him in the playing XI, Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma will open the batting for the team.'
Gill will try to prove a point with aggressive cricket in Asia Cup, says Irfan Pathan
Hardik Pandya could become the first Indian and overall the third player in the history of T20 Internationals to achieve the double of 2000 runs and 100 wickets.
India's bowling coach Morne Morkel expects the batting unit to lift its performance under pressure in the Asia Cup final against Pakistan
The tournament had been fraught with tension from the very start, and the animosity carried into the final, which India won by five wickets on a rather long Sunday night.
Abhishek Sharma was brutal and beautiful in equal measure during his scintillating 74 as India made a tricky chase look comfortable, winning an ill-tempered Super 4 contest of the Asia Cup against Pakistan by six wickets in Dubai on Sunday.
Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari is one of those mindless fluff kind of date movies, where there is no real conflict, lots of singing and dancing in fancy outfits (as brief as possible for the ladies), observes Deepa Gahlot.
Spinners of both sides will have a significant role to play considering that Jasprit Bumrah and Shaheen Shah Afridi are the only specialist pacers who will be seen in action in Sunday's match.
Kuldeep Yadav grabbed 3/18, while Axar Patel played a vital role getting 2/18 besides bowling 15 dot balls in the game to power India to an emphatic seven-wicket victory.
Pakistan are currently in the second spot with two points, ahead of UAE (2 points) on net run rate.
To defend their Asia Cup title, India must improve catching and find a steady middle order. Friday's dead rubber is a good chance to try these out.
IMAGES of the Asia Cup Final played between India and Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday
How Varun spends his time in a hotel room... Pooja becomes 'awaara'... Pranita gets into a bikini...
Such has been the problem of plenty for selectors in the T20 format that they are finding it difficult to even accommodate Yashasvi Jaiswal -- a proven performer in T20 cricket.
How well will Shubman Gill fit in the T20 team? Is it a gamble by the selectors in order to unite captaincy across formats? asks Harish Kotian.
UAE captain Muhammad Waseem said they won't treat the opening match against T20 World champions India as a big game and will look to play normally.
'In the beginning of Thamma, he's a common man like all of us. At the end of the film, he's a sexy beast!'
'He has been working hard on his bowling. This was a perfect game for him.'
Male bonding is among Bollywood's favourite subjects, and there have been many films about it, like Dosti, Anand, Sholay...
Kuldeep Yadav's artistry was too much for a clueless UAE to comprehend as India hardly broke a sweat in an emphatic nine-wicket victory in their Asia Cup opener in Dubai on Wednesday.
Unless a player picks up an injury in training, India's team is expected to wear the same look against a Pakistan squad that are without top stars Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, lending it a look of youth and experience.
Skipper Suryakumar Yadav made optimal use of available resources in both departments as India did enough to beat a spirited Oman by 21 runs to end their league stage commitments in Asia Cup with a hat-trick of victories.
The inclusion of Gill in the squad has raised doubts in the minds of management about who will open the innings for their side, along with left-hand batter Abhishek, in the tournament.
This is the first-ever India vs Pakistan final across 17 editions of the Men's Asia Cup since the tournament's inception in 1984.
Just who are the reining stars of Bollywood? One look at Maddock Films' 20th anniversary party gives you a pretty good idea.
Shubman Gill is the flavour of the season after his stupendous show in the recent Test series against England but he will face a contender in Axar Patel for vice-captaincy
Punjab's Abhishek Sharma hammered a 96-ball 170 against Saurashtra, while Jharkhand's Utkarsh Singh's 91 fired his team to a big win against Odisha
'Jaiswal has an avg of 36 & a strike rate of 164 in T20Is and he got dropped for Gill who has avg of 30 and a strike rate of 139.' 'There is no place for merit anymore.'
Gurindervir, Kujur, Manikanta, Amlan set new 4x100m relay national record
Pooja and Siddhanth go trekking... Zahan spams us from London... Sara Tendulkar twins with Banita Sandhu...
'He adds stability in the middle order and there were spots where he could have slotted in.'
Indian shooters' quest to better their medal tally at the Asian Championships (rifle/pistol/shotgun) began with the men clinching the 10m air pistol team silver, while Faridabad marksman Anmol Jain missed out on an individual medal in the event, finishing sixth in Shymkent, Kazakhstan, on Monday.
Shubman Gill and Jasprit Bumrah returned to India's T20 squad for next month's Asia Cup, but IPL star performers Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal missed out.
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