Asia Cup: UAE heat forces change in match timings; check out what time the IND-PAK game will start
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Asia Cup: UAE heat forces change in match timings; check out what time the IND-PAK game will start")
Asia Cup UAE heat forces change in match timings; check out IND-PAK game time Photograph: (AFP)
The start time for all games, barring the UAE-Oman (day game on September 15), has been pushed by half an hour from the original schedule due to extreme heat.
The 2025 Asia Cup is just around the corner, and plenty of stuff continues to happen on the sidelines. While the BCCI is working on finalising the lead sponsor for Team India before the eight-team tournament gets underway in the UAE (from September 9 onwards), the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) has altered timings for 18 out of 19 scheduled matches to beat the UAE heat during this month, with the tournament concluding on September 28. The start time for all games, barring the UAE-Oman (day game on September 15), has been pushed by half an hour from the original schedule due to extreme heat.
"The start time for 18 out of the 19 DP World Asia Cup 2025 matches has been updated. These matches will now begin at 6:30 pm local time (Gulf Standard Time)," the Emirates Cricket Board said in a statement on its website. "The Monday, 15 September match between UAE and Oman will start at 4 pm local time at the Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi - the only day game of the tournament."
Per the earlier schedule released by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), all matches were supposed to start by 6 pm local time (7:30 pm IST), with now 18 games to begin at 6:30 pm local time (8 pm IST); the marquee India-Pakistan Group A game to get underway in Dubai at the same time.
India-Pakistan situation
Considering tense cross-border relations between the arch-rivals, the two boards – the BCCI and the PCB decided against touring each other’s country, even for ICC events, with the apex body bringing in a neutral venue concept for every tournament the two teams are part of, be it in men’s or women’s cricket.
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Despite the latest events, India and Pakistan are placed in the same group, alongside the hosts UAE and Oman, with the remaining four teams (Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Hong Kong and Bangladesh) consisting of Group B.
Meanwhile, Team India will open their 2025 Asia Cup campaign against the UAE on September 10 before facing Pakistan in the blockbuster clash on September 14. Their last group game is against Oman in Abu Dhabi on September 19.
Should India and Pakistan top Group A, both are likely to face each other again in the next stage, and with that, the chances of them meeting for the third time in this tournament (in the finale) also increase.
