For obvious reasons, August 9 clash between India and Pakistan in the last league match of the Asian Champions Trophy will be the highlight of the tournament. And despite sitting pretty at the top at the moment, India will be hoping to keep the momentum against the arch-rivals as the teams continue fine-tuning their plans for the Asian Games.
India is unbeaten so far with three wins and a draw while Pakistan managed its first win in the competition against China to stay in the race for semifinal. Their contrasting outings put the host as favourite but it will need to avoid complacency and errors to remain on top. It will also have to guard against a desperate Pakistan going all out with a semifinal spot at stake.
Recent history is overwhelmingly in India’s favour. A major tournament win for Pakistan came way back in 2014 at the now-defunct Champions Trophy. The last time it won was at the 2016 South-Asian Games, where India sent a developmental side with little expectations. Since then, in 14 meetings, India has won 12 times with two draws, the second of them at the 2022 Asia Cup. But despite the numbers favouring India, rankings, performances and form matter little when the two teams face off.
