Pakistan are set to face the UAE on September 17.
The India vs Pakistan conflict is scaling new heights following the Men in Blue’s decision to not shake hands with the neighbouring players after a dominating seven-wicket victory against them in the ongoing ACC Asia Cup 2025. This was after the recent escalated political tensions between the two countries in May 2025.
However, amidst the controversy around the post-match incidents, a video of ex-Pakistan batter Mohammad Yousuf went viral on social media. The player was seen to refer to an animal while naming the Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav on a Pakistani television show.
After facing severe backlash from the fans, the former player has finally addressed the matter. Yousuf took to X (formerly Twitter) to explain that his words were not meant to derogate the Indian skipper. But he has also questioned the fans for not protesting over one of the comments of the former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan towards the ex-Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi.
However, following the handshake row, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had lodged formal complaints and demanded the ICC to remove the match referee of that fixture, Andy Pycroft, from the panel of officials of the multi-national tournament. But the authority has rejected their demand, while there are speculations about whether the nation would decide to boycott the eight-team league.
Notably, the Men in Green have also cancelled their pre-match press conference ahead of tomorrow’s clash against the hosts, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
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The defending champions, India, have already secured a place in the Super Fours of the Asia Cup with back-to-back wins against the UAE and Pakistan. It is expected that the Men in Blue would also claim a victory while facing a relatively inexperienced Oman on September 19 to advance to the next stage of the league with a dominating show.
However, Pakistan also have a great chance to qualify for the Super Fours by winning their next match on September 17. But if they decide to pull out of the clash against Oman, they would be knocked out of the T20 tournament. In that case, the hosts would advance to the next round of play as they have already beaten Oman and secured a total of four points in two matches so far.
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