Will spinners dominate the India-Pakistan clash in Asia Cup?

Dubai: It’s all set. The highly anticipated, high-voltage clash between India and Pakistan in the Asia Cup is just hours away, and the atmosphere is electric.

The last time these two rivals met in a T20 International was in June last year in the West Indies, where India edged out Pakistan by six runs before eventually going on to lift the trophy. Now, over a year later, they face off once again — but a lot has happened in that time, adding layers of intensity and emotion to this already fierce rivalry.

The Pahalgam terror attack in April 2025 sparked calls for a boycott of this fixture, triggering mixed reactions across the cricketing world. However, despite the surrounding controversies, the players are ready to take the field, and fans can expect a thrilling contest.

India’s strategy in their opener against hosts UAE might offer clues to their approach for this game. On a spin-friendly Dubai pitch, they fielded a spin-heavy lineup with Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Varun Chakaravarthy, supported by Jasprit Bumrah as the lone specialist pacer. Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube added balance as pace-bowling all-rounders.

The plan worked flawlessly — India bowled out the UAE for just 57 runs and chased the target down in only 4.3 overs. With the surface assisting spinners heavily, the same XI is likely to be retained for the Pakistan clash. The spin trio of Axar, Kuldeep, and Varun are expected to be key, especially against Pakistan’s middle order.

Conditions at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium are expected to play a significant role. Dew is likely to settle in as the evening progresses, making bowling second a potential challenge. Hence, the captain winning the toss may opt to bat first.

Though Pakistan depend heavily on their pace attack, they have also managed to shift focus on spinners for the UAE conditions. Head coach Mike Hesson recently had emphasised a spin-dominated bowling attack designed for this edition of the tournament.

Pakistan have Abrar Ahmed, Sufiyan Muqeem and Mohammad Nawaz to counter Indian strong batting line-up.

According to AccuWeather, Dubai will see temperatures touching 39°C and humidity around 44 per cent. Winds are expected to blow at around 33 km/h, adding another challenge for the players. By night, temperatures will drop to about 30°C under clear skies, but air quality is expected to dip.

India probable XI: Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Sanju Samson (wk), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah

Pakistan probable XI: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha (c), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed.