NEW DELHI: As India gear up to face arch-rivals Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday, former cricketer Aakash Chopra has delivered a simple yet powerful message — dominate the powerplay and the trophy could be theirs.“Win the powerplay and control the match. Many times you have to close the match later, but against Pakistan, you just close the game right at the top, and if you do that, you will be in a very good space,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!India have already beaten Pakistan twice in this edition — by seven wickets in the group stage and by six wickets in the Super Fours. Chopra believes that while India have the ability to recover from a shaky start, Pakistan lack that resilience. Live Updates: India vs Pakistan Asia Cup Final“When I look at it from our perspective, it seems like we can figure out even if the powerplay is not good. If you see against Sri Lanka, our powerplay wasn’t good with the ball, but India made a comeback after that. However, Pakistan won’t be able to do that. Pakistan is totally about how they start,” he noted.
Poll
Who do you think will dominate the powerplay in the Asia Cup 2025 final?
The ex-opener also highlighted Pakistan’s batting struggles. “It’s been heard that Saim Ayub is not eating eggs even in his breakfast because he has scored so many already. Salman Ali Agha has been seen struggling a lot. The batting has been slightly topsy-turvy and they probably do not have that much experience and expertise either,” he said.Chopra urged Jasprit Bumrah to strike early and expressed hope that Hardik Pandya would be fit to feature. He also warned that Shaheen Afridi could become ineffective if denied wickets with the new ball. “If you don’t give them wickets at the start, Shaheen Afridi’s performance has improved slightly, but if you don’t give him wickets with the new ball, his situation turns bad. Then he doesn’t understand what needs to be done, and that’s not just him, it’s the entire Pakistan team,” Chopra explained.With the same batting-friendly pitch used in their previous clash set for the final, India’s top order will be eager to follow Chopra’s blueprint and strike early dominance.
