Follow UsAhead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said the real task for Pakistan is not just to win the tournament but also to beat arch-rivals India. Pakistan had beaten India in the final in the previous edition in 2017, and Sharif is hopeful that history will repeat itself once again.
“We have a very good side, and they have done well in recent times, but the real task now is to win the Champions Trophy and defeat our arch-rival, India, in the upcoming match in Dubai. The entire nation stands behind them," Sharif said while speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the renovated Gaddafi stadium in Lahore.
This is the first ICC event hosted by Pakistan since 1996. However, India continue to remain absent from playing cricket in Pakistan due to the political tension between the two nations.
As a result, the two teams will take on each other in Dubai on February 23. “It is a big occasion for Pakistan that we are hosting a big ICC event after nearly 29 years," Sharif said.
“I have full confidence that our team will continue to make the nation proud in the upcoming Champions Trophy."
India have never lost a One-Day International (ODI) against Pakistan since losing the Champions Trophy final in 2017. Pakistan have tasted defeat in five of the six matches since that day.