IND vs PAK Live Cricket Score: Is Hardik Pandya Fit To Play Final?

Throughout this Asia Cup, Pakistan leggie Abrar has conceded at just above 5 runs per over – sensationally economical performances, just completely putting the brakes on the opposition's scoring and wrestling control in that way. India did find success against him in the Super 4s, plundering him for 42 runs — and more of the same will be needed. Abrar being expensive will force Salman Agha to turn to other inferior options with the ball, and India will back themselves to take advantage of those matchups and go big.

While Pakistan seem to be a team who prefer to put runs on the board and defend totals instead of chasing them down, India are almost the other way around. Both teams might just get to do exactly what they want — but history in Dubai suggests that chasing remains the stronger option, disproportionately so. As for what the pitch looks like… 135 was defended on Thursday, 201 wasn't on Friday. We will need to have a closer look at this pitch to really get an idea of what to expect.

World t20 final ✅
Champions trophy final ✅
Asia cup final ⏰

The superstition must continue. Let’s go team India 🇮🇳

Who do you think will be today’s player of the match? 👀#INDvsPAK #AsiaCup2025 #final pic.twitter.com/Z1J6tl9Yle

— DK (@DineshKarthik) September 28, 2025

Dinesh Karthik sending good energy towards India by partaking in his superstition and doing his bit. Karthik shared a video to social media of him ironing a shirt in preparation for the final — explaining that the last two times he did this, India went on to win. Will his little piece of magic help out, or is it just prophetic?

 The standards Jasprit Bumrah has for himself are incredible: he is the foremost bowler in the world across all formats, but it is in the shortest version of the game where his skills broke through, and where he has an undeniable impact. It hasn't quite been his tournament – he has been expensive at times, not providing the same bite, as his speeds and revolutions are down a bit as he works his way back to full fitness. But this is a final – and the last time India were in a T20 final, he was the MVP in Barbados. India simply need him to show up to help them win tonight.

There is still a doubt over whether Hardik Pandya will be fit in time to play in the final, going off early against Sri Lanka after bowling only a single over. Pandya's all-round abilities mean he is a practically impossible player to replace: you are either going for a frontline batter like Rinku Singh, or a frontline seamer like Arshdeep Singh, to make up for his absence. India's balance gets affected with such a decision, whichever way they go, which is why Hardik's fitness is so important. But if you had to guess, an extra seamer to support Bumrah might be more important, with Axar Patel moving up to 7 meaning it's not the worst case scenario in the batting department.

Tilak Varma has regularly batted in what is arguably the most important position in the batting unit. A number 4 has to be a player with many feathers in his hat: so far, Tilak's inability to consistently find the boundary against spin is holding him back just a touch. A 132 strike rate in the tournament thus far isn't bad by any means at all, but it still remains short of that truly elite status which India will expect from their option in that positio

His talent and ability is beyond reproach, but he will feel the breath of Shreyas Iyer and Rajat Patidar, amongst others, on his back. As much as SKY, he is due a really important performance tonight.

One of the happier signs India took away from the tight match against Sri Lanka was how the middle order stood up to continue the top's momentum, something they had struggled with. Samson in particular looked in good touch, finally findign his feet to a degree as he scored a powerful 39. His six-hitting against spin in particular was a positive, and will allow India to keep the score ticking through the middle overs. A box ticked.

At the moment, it seems almost impossible to bowl to Abhishek Sharma in a way that will prevent him from taking you for boundaries, forget about in a way that can help dismiss him. In fact, throughout this tournament, it has required errors from him to stop him from truly exploding. With that in mind, Pakistan will remember how Abhishek was undone in last year's IPL playoffs: out-swingers from Mitchell Starc, early on, getting him to fend at it and find his off-stump cartwheeling.

Shaheen was once seen as the spiritual successor to Starc in world cricket. Can he channel some of that magic again to cause that kind of impact?

A bullish Suryakumar Yadav, after India had disposed of Pakistan in the Super 4 match, said that this is not something that can be called a rivalry given India's record against their rivals in the T20I format. It's eye-watering for India: 12 wins, 3 losses. But if there is a team that knows that it is not about winning always, but winning at the right time, it is India: memories of that run in World Cup 2023 will be fresh scars, where the final is where it all went wrong.

Naqvi's presence is also somewhat crucial in terms of inter-administration responsibilities because of the expected absence of the BCCI. Reportedly, members of the Indian board chose not to be in attendance for previous matches due to the general sentiment around the match being one of negativity in the group stages, and this is something they don't want to go against for the final. Focus elsewhere, with new president Mithun Manhas announced today.

After having paid out of pocket to back up Haris Rauf himself, PCB head Mohsin Naqvi will be the official who presents the Asia Cup trophy irresepctive of which team ends up as the winners. This is due to his dual role as head of the ACC, and reports state he has already arrived in Dubai. Whether his presence alongside India (win or lose) might be seen as an olive branch or just another chance for conflict to brew will only come to light in the coming hours…

Down the other end, India have a series of questions that they need to answer to ensure they are at their best when the final begins. Prime amongst these is the dubious form of Suryakumar Yadav: while he started the tournament decently, he has gone nowhere since, failing to have any sort of impact throughout the Super 4s. SKY's ability and creativity is unquestionable, but he has just not found the positive, free-flowing starts that allows him to really get into his work. India have won despite his bad form, but they really need their captain to step up just for that extra boost of confidence with their batting.

As has been the case throughout the tournament, the control and threat that India's spinners can provide is what elevates them to the top. Kuldeep Yadav is the main man, and has been nothing short of sensational, as we have explored – but he also has the support of Axar Patel and Varun Chakravarthy. Neither of these bowlers have been at their true best with ball in hand, but they have still chipped in with wickets, and maintain their greatest strength: they don't bowl too many loose ones, which means that as they operate through the middle, they can apply immense amounts of pressure as batters feel themselves getting stuck. This is nothing new for India, but it is something that has taken a life of its own on the UAE's pitches.

Another minor issue, one exposed by the likes of Fakhar Zaman but most by Pathum Nissanka, is how they can seem a little one-dimensional and short on ideas if batters attack them in the powerplay. Pakistan will have to find the balance between risk and success, but attacking through the powerplay is a must with bat in hand.

3️⃣ consecutive fifties in the #Super4 🔥

Highest run-getter in #AsiaCup2025 with 3️⃣0️⃣9️⃣ runs 🙌#TeamIndia opener Abhishek Sharma is ready for the big #Final 💪@IamAbhiSharma4 pic.twitter.com/ij00FhpeKf

— BCCI (@BCCI) September 28, 2025

Hours before the start of the final, the BCCI sent out a tweet. It is captioned "3 consecutive fifties in the Super 4. Highest run-getter in the Asia Cup 2025 with 309 runs. Team India opener Abhishek Sharma is ready for the big final," to let the opposition know the storm that awaits them. Abhishek took down Pakistan in the previous two matches, his assault on Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf a throwback to some old-school, Viv Richards-type of hitting. Brutal and fearless. If he gets going one more time, Pakistan would be forced to press the panic button.

With this much noise and off-field controversy surrounding the match, the team which is capable of letting their cricket do the talking is the one which will start out with the advantage. This is the message sent after India won last week: you talk, we win. Can Pakistan turn the tide on that mantra and show up where it matters?

 If the BCCI took offence to Haris Rauf's indecent gesture during the Super 4 match between the two teams, the Pakistan Cricket Board has fired back by filing a complaint to the ICC against Arshdeep Singh. India's left-arm pacer retaliated after Rauf's act through a gesture of his own, which went super viral on social media, but also ruffled some PCB nerves. We're into the final and the two teams and boards continue to trade barbs.

Although Haris Rauf and Shaheen Afridi have performed better against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka with stronger contributions, they have flattered to deceive against India. Shaheen in particular has found himself exposed early to Abhishek’s onslaughts, as his gentler pace and pitch-it-up style has made him subject to that deadly swing. As such, Pakistan’s hopes for control rely on their spinners – but knowing what Abhishek can do against spinners in the powerplay, that too is flirting with danger.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of India vs Pakistan Asia Cup 2025 final. The mach will be held in Dubai on Sunday. Its the first team that both these teams are facing each other in an Asia Cup final after 41 years.